Hawk Of Jurai: Part Two
by VraieEsprit
Summary: Earth are in shock, Ryoko and Tenchi are left wondering who to trust. Washu enlists a spy's help, but her gamble could cost a friend her life. Sasami realises the true nature of her involvement with Tsunami. And Seiryo realises there's no way back...FINIS
1. Chapter 1

**Introduction and Disclaimer**

Well, here's part two :) I have to admit that, while writing this, I only have the vaguest of ideas as to where things are going. I have themes buzzing in my head and that's about it - so there's every possibility that this story might end up in a completely different scenario from the one I expect it to.

Not much else to say except to reinforce the facts that this is a TUxOVA storyverse, with a TenchiXRyoko pairing and a completely reworked Jurai family tree, meshed from the TU and the OVA universes into something approaching coherence.

**please do take the time to review** - I have no official proof reader (although I have one charming amigo who takes a peek at things now and then) and I rely on review/feedback info to let me know whether I should be continuing down this path or what. So if you can take the time to leave a quick comment, I appreciate it more than I can say and constructive criticism is always welcome :)

Usual legal bumf (copyrights etc) apply :)  
**  
Synopsis**

_Planet Earth is reeling._

As the smoke clears over the city of Osaka, Tenchi and Ryoko are waking up to the fact that life on this remote planet will never be quite the same again. Even Tenchi's own college friends aren't sure what to think, and Tenchi has never felt so isolated in the world he's always called his home.

In the remote security of the mountains, Washu is already beginning to hatch a plan, calling old friends into her web of intrigue as she tries to get to the bottom of the attack. Discovering the secrets that Seiryo Tennan keeps locked away comes with a price, however, and when her spy is brutally attacked, even Washu realises that they're in over her head. When an innocently spoken word seems to hold the key to everything, Washu knows that they're playing a much bigger game than she'd ever imagined...a game which will drag her right back to her past and a decision she made several milennia before.

On the planet Jurai, Sasami is receiving signals from a desperate Tsunami. Better than anyone, the Goddess knows what Tokimi is capable of, but can Sasami convince her Emperor and her sister that Jurai is in danger? As she discovers the true nature of her bond with Tsunami-kami-sama, she knows that the Priestess of Kihaku has made a terrible mistake. Not even Ayeka seems keen to leave the safe confines of Jurai's peaceful world...but Sasami knows that Tsunami's word must be heeded at all costs - even at the cost of her own life.

And who is the mysterious Yume, who seems to suddenly be so interested in Tenchi?****

HAWK OF JURAI: PART TWO

A Tenchi Muyo! Fanfiction  
by  
VRAIEESPRIT

Chapter One

_"Blessed of this World, grant health and prosperity to this new life."_

_The man bent his head, sketching a symbol of peace and protection in the air. In the mother's arms, the newborn infant uttered a gurgle, closing his eyes as sleep claimed him, and the man's eyes softened with tenderness as he gently touched the baby's brow._

"His benediction is complete." He murmured softly. "Have peace with you also, Yukio-san. You must rest. The world has accepted him as one of its own."

"Thank you, Lord Priest." The woman offered him a smile of gratitude, wrapping her burden more securely in the tattered blanket that warmed his small body.

"I will call on you again in a week." The Priest acknowledged her smile with one of his own, bringing his hands together in another devout sign. "Sleep, Yukio-san. The World will not claim this baby from your arms."

As the tired mother rose to her feet, placing the small, squirming bundle in the makeshift cradle, the Priest withdrew from the tiny, cramped hovel, pausing as he stepped into the bright sunlight and glancing around him for his companions.

"Is the baby well, Otosan?"

An eager voice drew his attention to his side and he gazed down into the eager eyes of a young girl, no more than seven or eight summers, with thick waves of brown hair pulled back from her face. He smiled, nodding his head.

"Yes, and the mother also, Kihaku be praised." He said softly. "All is well here...the World is satisfied and the child will live."

"I'm glad." The child's expression became one of relief. "Yukio-san has lost many children already...I know she thought the World was punishing her for taking a new husband when her first one drowned. But now she knows that isn't true...and I'm glad."

"How did you know of that, Tokimi-chan?" The Priest bent to her level, touching the youngster gently on the cheek as he did so. "Has Yukio-san confided in you?"

"I've heard her at prayer, before the weekly Ritual." Tokimi admitted. "I don't mean to eavesdrop, Father, but she always sounds so fervent and she never seems to mind that I'm there sweeping the steps. She came every day before the new baby was born, and I so wanted this one to be a happy time for her. She's so kind."

"I agree." The Priest nodded his head. "And so does Kihaku. She and her baby are blessed today, and we'll give thanks for it tonight, before we eat."

He turned, glancing around him.

"Where is your sister?" He asked. "I told you both not to wander off."

"I'm here, Otosan." A fresh voice joined the conversation and the Priest turned to see an older girl of maybe twelve years regarding him solemnly with sharp green eyes, a book clutched in one hand and her hair severely tamed back from her face with thick, braided cord of many colours. "Are we ready to go?"

"Don't you also want to know about the baby, masume-chan?" The Priest asked gently. The girl shrugged her shoulders, a smile touching her lips.

"I heard you tell Tokimi that he would be all right." She said. "And I'm glad too, Father."

The Priest pursed his lip, crossing the ground to her side and gently taking the book from her grasp, turning it over in his hands. He frowned, glancing up at her, and she met his gaze defiantly.

"This isn't a holy text." He murmured. "I have already told you, my child, that your path doesn't run in that direction. One day you will have to take on my work here, as Priestess of Kihaku. What use will the ramblings of invading heathens be when you have to control the spirit and the soul of a planet balanced so delicately between peace and destruction?"

The girl sighed, shaking her head.

"I was just curious." She said, a sad look touching her face. "The Newcomers don't lose babies like we do - and mothers don't die when they give birth, either. They don't trust in Kihaku to save them, Father, but they still live and prosper. Why?"

The Priest looked stricken, his grasp tightening on the text in his hand as he grabbed his daughter roughly by the shoulders.

"I will not have you questioning the decisions of the World in favour of the Newcomers and their heresies!" He said darkly. "This will stop and it will stop now. All lives are forfeit to Kihaku's grace - your own as much as any of them. You have a lot to learn before you become a Priestess, mark my words."

The girl was silent for a moment, as if digesting this. Then she raised her gaze to his, meeting his angry green eyes with impassive ones of her own.

"Perhaps I don't want to be Priestess, then." She said softly. "If it means letting people die who shouldn't have to. I don't understand why, Otosan. If the World is good, why do so many people suffer? And if the Newcomers are heretics, why don't they suffer along with us?"

"Not another word!" The Priest thundered, tossing the book to the ground with a thud loud enough to make both young girls jump. "We will return home and we will give thanks for the life of Yukio-san and her baby...and I will not hear another word of heresy pass your lips unless you wish to endure a flogging for it come the dawn!"

"Shut up, you idiot." Tokimi slipped her hand into her sister's grip, squeezing it tightly. "You say silly things and you only make Father angry."

She raised her blueish eyes to her father's.

"Please, Otosan, don't be cross." She emplored. "This is a happy day."

The Priest opened his mouth to snap, then hesitated, shaking his head.

"You are right, Tokimi-chan." He murmured. "And I must not upset Kihaku by acting with violence on a day the World has honoured. We will return and we will celebrate in peace, as a family. Come, both of you. There will be no more talk of Newcomers. They live their lives and we shall live ours."

For a moment the older girl hesitated, pausing as she glanced back across the horizon towards the glistening domes the settlers had begun to erect. She let out a heavy sigh, retrieving her book from the dirt and dusting down it's covers as she slid it into her belt. Then, without a word, she followed her father and sister down the hill towards their own home. As they reached the door, the Priest shot her a troubled look, touching her gently on the cheek.

"You are my blood daughter and my heiress." He murmured. "Somehow I must make you understand what that means...or this planet will be doomed."

In the darkness of her chamber, Sasami opened her eyes, blinking a couple of times as she struggled to work out where she was. Pulling herself into a sitting position, she drew her blankets more tightly around her, frowning as she sought to make sense of the swirling images that confused her senses. It had been a dream then, she realised, glancing around her chamber with a heavy sigh.

"Tsunami, is this your doing?" She murmured, reaching up a fist to rub the sleep from her tired crimson eyes. "I thought you weren't going to do this to me any more. I thought we had an agreement - that you knew that this was my life and that you were going to follow my lead, not the other way around."

A chill wind whistled through the chamber, and Sasami shivered, clutching at her blankets as the mirror pool began to glint and glow with a strange ethereal light. Muttering under her breath, Sasami reluctantly slid her feet over the side of the bed, dropping silently to the floor and padding softly across to the water's edge, glancing down into its glittering depths. The reflection that stared back at her was not her own, but that of a woman of adult years, thick flowing hair bound back from her face in two long tails as she met her companion's gaze gravely. Sasami bit her lip.

"It _is_ you, Tsunami." She said quietly. "What's going on? Why are you waking me with funny dreams again?"

"_Tokimi._" The word echoed in her head and the water of the pool swirled suddenly, morphing the woman's image into the visage of another. Sasami let out a gasp, her hand flying to her mouth as she registered the stranger.

"She was in my dream." She murmured. "But...but she was a child...and I don't understand. Why are you showing me this, Tsunami? I thought you were connected to the children of Jurai - but wherever that place was, it was old and remote. It wasn't Jurai and it doesn't make sense. What do you want me to know?"

She grimaced, frustrated.

"I wish you could tell me things more clearly." She added. "If we really are going to share memories and thoughts one day, we're going to have to find a better way to communicate than this."

The pictures in the mirror pool flickered and changed once more to show a planet and before Sasami's horrified eyes, storms and volcanoes ravaged the surface, tormenting and killing all the people in its path. Some cowered and begged for mercy, others ran screaming for their lives, but none escaped the growing wave of destruction and darkness that swept like a demon over the hills and valleys. In the background was the figure she had seen in her dream, but there was a dark madness in her blue eyes as she surveyed the blackening landscape, and Sasami shivered, longing to look away.

"Stop it." She whispered. "Tsunami, I don't want to see people die. Just explain to me what you want me to know!"

"_She will come_." Tsunami's voice was little more than a breath on the wind. "_Beware, Sasami-chan_."

"What do you mean, she will come?" Sasami looked frightened. "Tsunami, I need more information! What is this world? Who is this Tokimi woman? And why should I beware? What can she possibly want with me?"

"_Not you. Me._ _Us_."

Tsunami's features reformed in the glistening mirror pool, and the apparition reached out a hand, drawing Sasami to press her own fingers to the water's surface. A bolt of energy flickered between them, and Sasami jerked backwards, pictures flooding her mind as she fell to the floor. Faces and sounds mingled across her senses, confusing and disorientating her as she struggled to make sense of them. And then, as the melee began to clear, one image came through more strongly than any other, and she let out a shriek of alarm.

"_Tenchi_!" She exclaimed. "_No_!"

_----_

Almost as soon as the words had left Seiryo's lips, there was a tremendous series of explosions from behind the bar area of the club and as the Galaxy Police officers closed in through the thickening smoke, Tenchi struggled to regain his footing, wishing that he had thought to bring his sword with him to Osaka.

"At least then I'd have a way to defend myself." He muttered under his breath. "If only I knew how to switch on the Light Hawk Wings - but I don't. I don't know what triggered them against Kagato and I have no idea how to spark them off again now. This place is going to burn us all to a cinder, and I don't know how to get us out of it!"

Almost as soon as the thought had crossed his mind, he became aware of a huge surge of light, blazing out across the rapidly crumbling club and he glanced up, his heart in his throat as he realised where it was coming from. Throwing caution to the wind, Ryoko had lifted herself bodily into the air, her arms flung out at her sides as she threw up a forcefield around as many of the nearby people as she could reach. Her eyes glinted with a mixture of indignation and fury, and light flickered across her palms, soaring and surging into her familiar orange sabre.

"If you think I'm going to stand back and let you hurt Tenchi, you've got another thought coming." She hissed, her gaze trained on the angry Galaxy Police Agent as the energy that enveloped her grew stronger and more volatile with every second. "You'll have to get through me first, I told you that. And I'm not a pushover, Seiryo Tennan. If you know who I am then you know what I am capable of and you do not want me for an enemy."

"I have a job to do, and you're in my way." Seiryo growled, bringing his sabre down hard on the edge of Ryoko's forcefield, but she merely repelled his blow with a blast of blood-red energy, sending him staggering back and almost knocking him off his feet.

"Tenchi, some help would be nice!" Ryoko turned, casting Tenchi a glance, and Tenchi bit his lip.

"I'm trying! I don't know how without my sword!" He called back to her. "Ryoko, you can't fight all of them! Pull back...we have to get people out of here before the whole place goes up in flames!"

"I can't hold the forcefield up forever...not if I'm going to take this Tennan joker down." Consternation flickered across Ryoko's expression. "Get as many people out as you can - don't worry about me. I'll deal with the Galaxy Police...it won't be the first time!"

"Ryoko!"

"Just trust me! Do it!" Ryoko exclaimed. "Before people get hurt and I get the blame!"

"All right." Tenchi gritted his teeth, casting her one last glance before jumping up on one of the few tables still standing. "Everyone, follow me! Nothing will happen to you if you come now - quickly and quietly. We have to evacuate this place before the entrances are blocked! Follow me!"

Dazed and confused, at first the surrounding patrons did nothing but stare at him blankly, their gazes flitting in disbelief towards the still-hovering pirate as she parried another attack from Seiryo's powerful blade. Then, another explosion from the furthermost point of the club startled them out of their stupor, and with cries and screams they surged in the direction Tenchi had indicated, each pushing and shoving as they struggled to be the first one out into the night air. Seiryo's accompanying officers did their best to prevent the exodus but the force of stampeding people was too much and they were pushed back, their weapons trampled underfoot as they were forced to retreat.

"Help me!"

The feeble voice of a girl dragged Tenchi's attention away from the battle that was growing in intensity, and he scanned the smoke-filled venue for the source of the noise. There was the sound of feeble coughing, and then the plaintive call was repeated.

"Please...someone...help me!"

At first he saw nothing, but then, just as he turned to leave the club, he caught sight of a figure waving to him desperately through the thick haze. His own escape forgotten, Tenchi hurried to her side, realising as he did so that the girl was partly buried beneath a collapsed table and that she was having trouble getting up. Aware that her leg might well be broken, he heaved back the table-top, reaching for the stricken woman's hand. She gazed up at him with startled, grateful lilac eyes, and he offered her a smile.

"There, you're free." He told her, struggling not to choke on the smoke himself as the acrid fumes began to sting at his eyes. "Can you get up?"

"I...I don't know." The girl was on the verge of tears, and she gripped his arm tightly. "Please don't leave me here! I'm scared!"

"I won't leave you." Tenchi made up his mind. As a bolt of orange energy seared across the floor not far from where they stood, he gritted his teeth, knowing that Ryoko had dropped her forcefield in order to properly engage the invading officer in their fight, and that he would have no choice but to flee across an open battlefield if he was going to get the girl outside.

"I'm going to lift you." He said softly. "It might hurt...hurt a bit, but you'll feel better when you're outside...it's g...getting hard to breathe down there."

"I'm so scared." The girl buried her head in his shoulder as he slid his arms carefully around her, lifting her from the fallen debris and clutching her tightly to him as he scanned the club for the safest route of exit. She was light in his arms, and she clung on to him, sobs wracking her slight form as he made his way cautiously across the cluttered floor to a newly blasted hole in the wall of the building, stepping outside into the night air with a mixed sense of relief and anxiety. Setting the girl down gently on the ground, he stood, turning back towards the building which was now in full blaze, but his rescued waif reached out her hand, grabbing his tightly in her grip.

"Please don't leave me." She repeated, her voice no more than a whisper. Tenchi bit his lip, glancing at the club and then down at the pitiful form of the girl who sat huddled on the pavement before him. He sighed, taking in her soot-smudged features and tearful lilac eyes, and with a sense of regret, he obediently dropped back down at her side, slipping off his own slightly singed jacket and placing it gently around her shoulders.

"I won't." He said softly. "But help will be here soon. I can already hear sirens - that will be the fire department and they'll put it out. It will be all right - and a doctor will come and look at your leg."

"I...I think it's all right." The girl shook her head, glancing down at the bruising that was beginning to mottle her left leg. "It just...scared me. I hate fire...I always have."

She swallowed hard.

"My name is Yume." She added softly. "What's yours?"

"Tenchi." Tenchi smiled at her. "Tenchi Masaki."

"Thank you for saving my life, Tenchi." A tiny smile touched Yume's features. "What do you think happened in there? I think I must've passed out when the table hit me - I don't remember anything until the whole place was flames and I was trapped under the wood."

"I wish I knew the answer to that." Tenchi's expression became shadowed. "But you should probably not think too much about it. You're safe now...that's what matters."

"That girl...she could fly." Yume whispered, her grip on his hand tightening. "Did you ever see anything like it? Like she was some kind of guardian angel...sent to protect us!"

"Well, I don't know about that..." Tenchi began, but before he could finish his sentence, there was a final tremendous explosion from the nightclub as a large section of the roof blew off, sending a shower of debris down across the surrounding area and narrowly missing the scared gathering of escapees by a matter of metres. Yume flinched back, uttering a whimper of terror, but Tenchi was on his feet in a second, fear flickering in his dark brown eyes.

"_Ryoko_!" He exclaimed, taking a step or two towards the club.

"Tenchi? Where are you going?" Yume's fearful voice came from behind him, but he was oblivious to her call. Black, acrid smoke poured from the remains of the club and terror gripped his heart as he contemplated the pirate's chances of surviving such a blast.

"Ryoko..." He whispered, sinking down onto his knees.

For a moment there seemed to be a dull hush that pervaded the whole area, the flickering flames dying down as the inferno burned itself out. Then, as the distant sirens became ever louder, there was a surge of light from the wrecked shell of the building as something soared from the ruins, encased in a thick orange glow. Tenchi's heart leapt in his chest as he realised what it meant.

"Ryoko!" He exclaimed. "You're all right!"

The light seared across the ground towards him, scattering the nervy escapees once more as the pirate dropped down carefully on the grass. She drew a deep breath, shaking her head as if to clear it, and Tenchi hurried to take her hands in his as the bright light faded away.

"You're all right." He echoed, and Ryoko nodded her head, glancing down at her sooted clothing. She sighed.

"More than can be said for my outfit." She said resignedly. "That's the last time I make an effort on a night out, Tenchi-kun. It's just not worth the laundry bill."

"Seiryo?"

"Disappeared." Ryoko's eyes flickered with distaste. "Him and his ship, summoned away in the middle of the battle by...I don't know what by. He just flickered and vanished, like the whole lot had been teleported out of this space. Him, his crew...the lot of them. Leaving me to die in a burning building, which was very un-gentleman-like of him."

Tenchi hugged her tightly.

"I'm just glad you're all right." He said softly. "I'm sorry I wasn't more help. I don't know how to control these Wings yet...and then someone needed my help, and I couldn't just leave them to die."

"Did you get everyone out?" Ryoko asked. Tenchi shrugged.

"I think so." He agreed. "Thanks to your intervention, noone was badly hurt."

Ryoko sighed, and Tenchi saw a haunted look cross her face as she turned to survey the gaggle of cold, frightened club-goers.

"At what price?" She asked quietly, raising a hand to gesture towards the crowd. "The secret's out of the bag, Tenchi. So much for the normal Earth girl disguise."

Tenchi turned, seeing that the thirty or forty people who had remained behind had begun to gather around them, keeping their distance as they whispered and nudged among themselves, each staring at Ryoko with a mixture of fear and fascination. His heart sank as he recognised his college friends among the rest and he swallowed hard, reaching down to squeeze Ryoko's hand in his.

"You did what you had to do." He murmured. "And we're in this together, Ryoko-chan."

"No...not really." Ryoko smiled sadly. "I'm the one who flew and blasted that jerk. You didn't do anything...there's no reason for them to know about you or your Jurai roots. It's me who's created the distraction, Tenchi. Maybe it's not a good idea for me to be in Osaka after all. And now I've attacked a Galaxy Police officer, they'll be after my blood too. I think I just made things a whole lot more complicated."

"What..._are _you?" A hesitant voice came from the surrounding crowd at that moment and both Tenchi and Ryoko turned to see Hiroshi regarding them both with uncertainty. He took a hesitant step forward, eying Ryoko warily as he drew closer to the couple. "What...exactly just happened? How did you...?"

"Are you a witch?" Someone else in the crowd demanded.

"No, she's a demon! A demon come to destroy us!" Another exclaimed.

"That's crazy!" Tenchi's eyes opened wide at this. "Thanks to Ryoko, nobody was killed!"

"Whoever that man was, he knew her and he called her a criminal." Kane put in his observation. "Why was he looking for you, Tenchi? And what have you got yourself involved in?"

"I don't think she's safe..."

"I'm scared!"

"Maybe she _is_ a demon! Or an alien!"

"Stop this! All of you!"

A fresh voice cut across the increasing hysteria and Tenchi turned in surprise, seeing Yume struggling to her feet from her position curled up on the ground. "Tenchi-san is right! This woman saved all of us! If she hadn't protected us and attacked that man, who knows what he would have done to us? I don't know who he is or what's happened here...I'm as scared as the rest of you. But I'm just glad to have left there with my life! If Ryoko-san is anything, she's a guardian angel sent to protect us! You should be grateful!"

"Yume?" Tenchi took a step towards her as she stumbled, and she gripped his arm, offering him a brave smile.

"I'm not afraid of you or your friend." She added softly. "And noone else should be, either. Ryoko-san is a hero. Wherever she came from, we should just be glad that she's here!"

Tenchi cast a glance at Ryoko, taking in the mixture of emotions that flickered across her expression. At length she shrugged her shoulders.

"It's all right." She said softly. "I know when I'm not wanted. I'm well used to that. Tenchi, I'm going home...I guess I'll see you there."

With that she dropped her gaze, her form flickering and blurring into nothing.

"Ryoko!" As a gasp went up from the surrounding crowd, Tenchi took a step forward, cursing under his breath.

"Where did she go?" Someone whispered. "How did she do that? Is it really demon magic?"

"Tenchi, you sure have weird taste in women, you know that?" That was Hiroshi, and for no apparent reason this casual attempt at humour seared anger through Tenchi's heart. He pushed his friend aside, fixing him with a hostile glare.

"If you knew how many times that woman has put her life and her reputation on the line to save me and to save people I care about, you wouldn't consider it even a little bit funny." He snapped. "If all of you are just going to gawp and stare, that's fine - but I'm following Ryoko's example. I'm going home."

With that he turned on his heel, making his way slowly along the pathway towards the block where his apartment building stood.

As he reached the corner, he heard someone call his name and he turned, his brows knitting in confusion as he registered the fact he had company.

"Yume." He said, surprised. "What are you doing here...why are you following me?"

"I didn't like how they were acting, back there." Yume limped along the pathway towards him. "You were so brave in there, and so was your friend. I think they were being harsh."

"Well, fear makes people do and say things." Tenchi sighed, glancing up at the sky. "But I'm glad someone doesn't think Ryoko's some kind of a demon. She isn't, Yume. She's one of the bravest people I know."

"Thanks to her, I have my life." Yume said softly. "You don't have to convince me. I believe you."

A faint smile touched Tenchi's lips.

"At least someone does." He said pensively. "And now I have to find her. Whatever the consequences, I'm not going to just abandon her when she's obviously shaken up."

Yume sighed.

"She's lucky she has you." She observed wistfully. "And you're lucky she's there to watch over you."

"Yes, maybe." Tenchi sighed. "But I should have been of more help tonight. I should have..."

"Done what?" Yume asked him softly. "Flown? Blown fire from your hands and cried war the way she did? Can you do those things too, Tenchi-san?"

Tenchi shook his head.

"No." He admitted. "But I could have done something. I feel like I let her down...and that man escaped."

"You saved my life, and helped evacuate countless others." Yume's eyes softened. "You came back for me, even though it was dangerous. I don't think you let anyone down tonight."

She offered him a smile.

"I'd like the chance to know you better." She added. "It's not often a dashing young man saves your life."

"Yume..." Tenchi began, and Yume let out a peal of amused laughter.

"I know." She agreed. "Tonight has been crazy from all perspectives. But I'd like us to be friends, anyway."

"I'd like that, too." Tenchi acknowledged. "After tonight, I don't know what's going to happen or how people are going to react when word spreads. But it's nice to know someone in this city isn't going to pass judgement without knowing all of the facts."

"Then it's a deal." Yume nodded, shaking his hand firmly. "We'll be friends."

She glanced up at the apartment building, a thoughtful look in her lilac eyes.

"This is where you live?" She asked softly. Tenchi nodded.

"During term time." He agreed. "Twelfth floor up. Hey, do you want to come in for a hot drink? You must be tired and you're still limping."

"You're very kind, but no." Yume shook her head. "I'm not far from my own home, and someone else needs you more tonight."

She smiled once more, touching his hand gently as she did so.

"But thank you again for your help, Tenchi-san." She whispered. "I know we'll be seeing a lot more of one another from now on."


	2. Chapter 2

**Chapter Two**

"Are you quite sure that you're all right, Sasami-hime?"

Sasami raised her gaze to Kamidake's anxious one, taking a tentative sip of the warm, soothing drink as she did so. She nodded her head, setting the mug down on her unit and offering him a faint smile.

"Yes. Thank you, Kamidake-san. I feel better...it was a bad dream."

"Sasami, your scream was heard all across the Royal Tree." Ayeka sat down on the end of her sister's bed, tying the loose threads of her dressing gown more tightly around her waist as she did so. "We thought the whole palace might be under attack. What's the matter? Your sleep hasn't been disturbed like this since Tenchi and Ryoko returned to the Earth. Not since Kagato was defeated and life on Jurai returned to normal."

"Is life on Jurai ever normal any more?" Sasami sighed, shuffling across the bed so that she could lean up against her elder sister, and Ayeka slid a comforting arm around her junior's shoulders, hugging her tightly. "It's all been so peaceful recently, but I suppose it wasn't going to last forever."

"Kamidake, I think you can go now." Ayeka glanced at the knight with a solemn smile. "Sasami-chan and I obviously need to talk. Thank you for alerting me to her distress so promptly, and for ensuring she was safe...I didn't know Father still had you posted outside her chamber at night, but I'm grateful that you were here this evening."

"It isn't Lord Haru's direct order, but Lady Sasami has been through a lot in recent weeks." Kamidake got to his feet, bowing his head in the younger princess's direction. "And I am sworn to assist the both of you honoured Princesses in any way that I can."

He offered Sasami a smile, and Sasami returned it shyly. Then the knight made his more formal bow to Ayeka, withdrawing from the chamber and shutting the door behind him.

Once he was gone, Ayeka let out a heavy sigh.

"Has this something to do with Tsunami?" She asked softly. Sasami bit her lip, nodding her head.

"Yes." She agreed reluctantly. "Ayeka-onechan, I thought this was all over with now. Tsunami promised me that I would always be in control and that I would be dominant over her when the time came for us to fully bond. But tonight she was putting pictures in my head again - messages that I don't understand. Something is worrying her and I can't make it out. It doesn't make any sense."

"Tell me what happened." Ayeka suggested. "It's late and everyone else is sleeping, so noone will disturb us. Kamidake is the only guard on duty in this sector of the palace, and he has too much honour to listen at the door to what we say."

"Kamidake is kind to me." Sasami reflected absently. "I'm glad he was there tonight, Ayeka. It was silly, but I was so scared..."

She shivered, pulling her blanket more tightly around her. "It wasn't a scary dream, even. It wasn't that at all. The dream was...almost nice. It was what Tsunami said afterwards that frightened me."

"Start at the beginning." Ayeka suggested. "We have plenty of time and I won't leave you until I know you're all right."

"What about Takeru-san? Won't he wonder where you are?" Sasami asked curiously. Ayeka's cheeks pinkened.

"That's my concern, not yours." She chided gently. "And besides, I gave you my word that I would always be here if you needed me. So here I am...and you do know you can trust me, don't you, Sasami-chan?"

"Yes." Sasami nodded her head. "More than anyone, Ayeka-onechan. I'm glad it was you Kamidake woke. I wouldn't want to talk to anyone else about this - not yet. Not till I know what it all means."

She reached up to rub her temples, sighing. "The dream was strange. It was a different world...not Jurai and not the Earth. Not anywhere like I've seen in all our travels. I don't know what world it was, but it seemed very...old, somehow. Like I was seeing something that happened a long time in the past."

"I see." Ayeka pursed her lips. "And you're sure it was more than just a random dream? That Tsunami sent you the message?"

"Yes. Quite sure." Sasami agreed. "She told me so, after I woke up. Ayeka, there was a man there - an older man, with greying hair and a long beard. They called him Priest, but he seemed to be more...more like a God among people. Like he was important in a way beyond just carrying out rituals. I can't explain it - but it was like he and the world were connected."

"Like you are with Tsunami?" Ayeka settled herself more comfortably on Sasami's covers.

"Perhaps." Sasami agreed cautiously. "But I don't know. Maybe not exactly the same."

"And what did this man do?"

"Not much." Sasami looked confused. "He blessed a baby. And he had two girls with him. One was younger than me, Ayeka, and the other about my age - or maybe a little older. The younger one seemed sweet and gentle and devoted to her father. She was really cute."

"And the other?"

"She..." Sasami faltered, shaking her head. "There was something about her that bothered me, but I don't know what it was. Something in her eyes that was familiar. But I didn't recognise her, exactly. She was dressed in all these odd robes and her hair was hidden under this strange braiding - like it was symbolic of something. The man called her his blood daughter and his heir...but she didn't seem to want to be either one. She didn't seem to want to be a part of the picture at all."

"And did Tsunami tell you why she showed you all of this?" Ayeka questioned. "I can see why it confused you. It doesn't make much sense to me either."

"When I woke up, she drew me to the mirror pool and showed me other pictures." Sasami said pensively. "The little girl - the sweet, gentle one - she was grown up. And the world that I'd dreamed about was being swallowed up by storms and volcanoes and all kinds of awful things. People were all dying, Ayeka, and she was there - watching and angry and totally different from how she was in my dream. Tsunami called her Tokimi, and she said that she was 'coming'. That I should beware."

She dropped her gaze, glancing down at her small hands. "Tsunami didn't tell me exactly why or what happened, but from what she did say, I think this Tokimi person seeks Tsunami. And then..."

She faltered, swallowing hard.

"Then Tsunami made me see pictures of Tenchi and this woman was there, trying to take him. I don't know why or how, but it was like she was pulling him into her snare...somehow. She meant him harm...there was so much anger and hate and it just made me feel all cold and scared. That's why I screamed."

"Tenchi." Ayeka looked troubled. "Do you think he's really in danger?"

"I think Tsunami always tells me the truth, even if she doesn't always do it clearly." Sasami sighed, suddenly feeling very tired. "Tokimi isn't from Jurai, but this is connected to Jurai somehow. It must be, because otherwise Tsunami wouldn't be able to reach out and touch it. And the book...the book the older girl had in my dream was inscribed in ancient Jurai lettering. It's hard to explain, but even though I could understand them when I was dreaming, I knew they weren't speaking in common galactic tongue or even in the old language of Jurai. It was something else...something completely alien to me."

"This whole thing is very perplexing." Ayeka pursed her lips, and Sasami could tell she was mulling the problem over. "And concerning, if your fears for Tenchi are justified."

"I feel like we should go to him. To the Earth." Sasami admitted. "Ayeka, do you think there's any way we can?"

Ayeka sighed, shaking her head.

"Unless you can tell me more, or we can find more out from some other source, I doubt Uncle or Father would sanction either of us to leave at such short notice." She said softly. "I'm needed here much more now my official role is no longer in doubt and then there's Takeru to consider. And you...you know how Father feels about you travelling around space. He hasn't completely adjusted to your kinship to Tsunami or your use of her ship...I doubt he'd give you permission to go."

"I know." Sasami looked troubled. "But something is going to happen, Ayeka...I just know that it is. And I want to be able to help Tenchi. I can't help thinking that it's my fault he's in trouble."

"Your fault?" Ayeka looked startled. "How could it be your fault?"

"I don't know." Sasami admitted. "But it has something to do with Tsunami and this Tokimi woman. About that I have no doubt."

------

"Well, there's not much use crying over spilt milk."

Washu sat back in her seat, regarding her pacing daughter with a thoughtful look. "What's done is done, Ryoko. You did what you had to do...I didn't think regret was a normal part of your make-up."

"It isn't." Ryoko sighed, dropping down onto an empty seat and crossing her legs in front of her. "But Washu, I didn't even think about what I was doing. I attacked a Galaxy Police officer and I used my magic in front of not only Tenchi's friends but everyone else in the club. No matter what happens now, I've put up a barrier between us. He so wants this normal life on Earth and I just don't fit that mould."

She groaned, a look of melancholy flickering in her amber eyes.

"I just don't like it. I wish I could take it back."

"Well, you can't." Washu said unsympathetically. "Look. You said yourself that your intervention saved a lot of people in that fire. Whether you revealed yourself or not is not the issue. Tenchi's not going to pass judgement on you because you put their lives and his ahead of your own disguise."

She stretched out an arm, reaching for the bowl of snacks that sat on the table beside her chair.

"What's more concerning - and what you should be paying more attention to, instead of whining and moaning about your boyfriend, is what this guy Seiryo Tennan wants with Tenchi in the first place."

"That's Galaxy Police business, I guess." Ryoko shrugged her shoulders. "And now I've breached my parole, I guess every squad in the universe will be paying a visit to the planet Earth in the hopes of picking me up. Maybe I should take Ryo Ohki and leave here completely...at least then Tenchi would be safe."

"Do you really think so?" Washu raised an eyebrow. "Stir yourself from your self-pity for a moment, you silly girl, and look at this in a rational way. You said this man came from nowhere and demanded Tenchi, yes?"

"Yes." Ryoko bristled at the tone in her companion's voice. "But Washu..."

"Why, then, if you left, would Tenchi be safe?" Washu cut across her protestations with a shrug. "Logic, that's what your brain needs. Think about it. You might be convinced every space cop in the universe is out to get you, but in this instance, it wasn't you this Tennan man came seeking. It was Tenchi. You helped prevent him from succeeding...but if you were there or if you weren't, it probably wouldn't affect whether the man tried again."

"I...I guess you have a point." Ryoko acknowledged. "Okay. So he's looking for Tenchi and I got in his way. So...what?"

"So why is any member of the Galaxy Police looking for an ordinary college kid like Tenchi?" Washu asked, popping the cracker in her mouth. Ryoko's brows knitted together.

"Tenchi isn't an ordinary college kid." She objected. "He's a Prince of Jurai."

"Exactly." Washu swallowed her mouthful, nodding her head. "And as such, do you think that Galaxy Police officials are likely to show up randomly in order to grab him? Considering that he's hailed as a hero twice over on Jurai and held in huge esteem by Azusa and his Council? Do you really think that Headquarters would sanction any attempt like the one you described? Even if they did suspect Tenchi of some grave crime, they'd be risking the wrath of Jurai itself to just arbitrarily go in and rip him away from his home without warning. The Galaxy Police aren't strong enough to face down the power Jurai has at its disposal. They'd have to get dispensation from Azusa to even venture into Tenchi's vicinity. And the fact that Tennan gave no indication of any such dispensation suggests to me that Jurai have not been involved."

She spread her hands.

"Which makes it more than likely that the Galaxy Police aren't, either."

"But..." Confusion flooded Ryoko's expression at this. "He was dressed in Galaxy Police uniform, and his ship reminded me of Yagami or Yukinoyjo, before Mihoshi crashed it into the lake outside. And he had other officers with him...he acted just like a pompous, arrogant jerk - exactly like I'd expect a Galaxy Police officer to act, in fact!"

"Well, suit yourself." Washu shrugged. "It sounds to me like an elaborate hoax."

She scooped up the bowl of snacks, holding it out to her companion.

"Rice cracker?"

"Washu, stop being so casual!" Ryoko exclaimed, bringing her arm across in frustration and knocking the bowl of crackers to the floor. "This is a major deal crisis!"

"You really need to control your temper more." Washu said levelly. "I hope you'll pick that up."

"Forget the damn crackers for a moment, will you?" Ryoko looked exasperated. "I'm trying to work out what the hell is going on!"

"Tell me again how this Tennan guy left the scene." Washu put her hands behind her head, sitting back and regarding her daughter expectantly. "Describe it to me...in as much detail as you can."

"Not much to describe." Ryoko shrugged. "He just vanished. Disappeared...like if he'd teleported. But it wasn't just him...it was his ship, and his officers as well. They just...vanished."

"In the middle of his battle with you?"

"Yes, when the fire started to get out of control." Ryoko agreed. "I figured he'd played coward and run."

"Or, more likely, his reason for being on the Earth had been achieved." Washu suggested. Ryoko shook her head.

"No...you haven't been listening. He came for Tenchi, and Tenchi was safe with me after Seiryo Tennan was gone."

"Unless that wasn't the real reason he was there, either." Washu suggested. "You have to think more deviously, my dear. Why go to all that trouble and leave without your prize? Seems unlikely. No. I think whatever Tennan-san came to do on the Earth tonight, he accomplished. And as soon as he did so, he withdrew...however he managed to do so. He probably didn't anticipate fighting you - but in the end, it didn't interfere in his final objective."

"I see." Ryoko looked sombre. "So you're saying it was all one giant diversion? That he wasn't after Tenchi at all but he came down and yelled out his name to create chaos while something else was going on?"

"Exactly." Washu nodded her head.

"But what?"

"Now that I can't tell you." Washu shrugged. "I wasn't there, and there's not enough information in what you've told me to make any kind of hypothesis. But I would be surprised if it had nothing to do with the anomalies I've picked up lately...and even, maybe, the theft of files from my laboratory."

"I'm officially confused." Ryoko grimaced. "But if this guy isn't working within Galaxy Police guidelines, Washu, does that mean my parole is still intact?"

"Your guess is as good as mine, but I suspect so." Washu said thoughtfully. "Impersonating an officer of the Galaxy Police is a crime in itself, after all."

"I suppose it is." Ryoko acknowledged. She sighed. "Well, that's one less thing to bother about, anyhow."

"Does Tenchi know where you are, by the way?" Washu asked. Ryoko shrugged.

"Sure. I told him I was going home." She agreed.

"But which home is home?" Washu asked. "You were in Osaka. Are you sure he knows you meant the mountains? Because otherwise he's going to be worried about you...and..."

"Osaka isn't home, and it may never be." Ryoko said heavily. "Not after last night. But I guess you're right. I was just upset...I didn't think. This is my safe haven, Washu...you know that. I figured it would have been obvious where I'd go."

"Tenchi's a man. They're not always as astute to female thinking as they'd like us to think." Washu said succinctly. "I think you should call him. Or even better - teleport yourself there...just so he knows that you're all right."

"But what if there are people all over Osaka looking for me?" Ryoko demanded. Washu rolled her eyes heavenwards.

"Ryoko, pull yourself together." She snapped. "You spent a long, long time evading people who were looking for you. At least prove you have some spine left in you and stop being such a baby!"

Ryoko sent her mother a mutinous look at this, hurt flickering in her amber eyes.

"Fine." She said flatly. "I'll go back to Osaka. But you could be nicer in the way you put things, you know, Washu."

With that she was gone, and Washu sighed, bending to pick up the scattered crackers, scooping them up into a neat pile and returning them to their bowl, setting it to one side.

"Sometimes I despair of her." She muttered. "But this business leaves me with a bad taste in my mouth. First all of that data being taken from my lab. Then these atmospheric anomalies which I can't quite figure out, but which were also present over the Science Academy when Dr Clay made his extraordinary escape from Tribunal justice. And now this man...Tennan, did Ryoko say? I'm sure I know that name from somewhere, but I'll be damned if I know where."

She sighed, hovering her fingers in front of her as she willed her laptop to take form, typing the name slowly into her database as she searched for any reference. A coat of arms flashed up onto the screen, followed by the name written in ornate Juraian lettering, and she frowned, skimming over the information.

"As I thought...an old family of Jurai." She murmured. "One of the oldest, in fact...old enough that I remember the name after so many thousands of years. But what can this Seiryo want with the Earth? Who is he?"

She pressed another series of buttons, her brow knitting together in confusion as her computer let out a warning beep, an 'Access Denied' warning flitting across the screen. 

"Now I know there's something sinister going on." She muttered. "Something connecting the Tennan family with Clay and the anomalies, and something that's preventing me from accessing any files on Juraian nobility and their connections and links. I must try another tack. I must try...something else."

She cleared the screen, entering a new set of digits and frowning as pictures and information flickered up on the screen.

"Tennan." She murmured. "How interesting..._Seiji_ Tennan was the victim of a violent space murder just a few days ago. I wonder what relationship he has to our mysterious Seiryo, and what the connection is?"

She squinted, scrolling down the screen as she digested more of the news article. As she reached the bottom, she let out an exclamation.

"Bingo." she muttered. "Agent Seiryo Tennan of the Galaxy Police...Seiji Tennan's son. This is tied up with Jurai somehow, I'm sure of it...but how and why, I'm not yet sure. I need more information...and for that I need to speak to someone who's a bit closer to the action than I am. I need to know as much as I can about Seiryo Tennan...and I need to know why he'd be launching random attacks on planet Earth. It seems he is associated with the Galaxy Police after all - but I'd be very much surprised if he was operating within his legal jurisdiction. I think I'll keep this piece of information a secret for the time being. Ryoko is already unstable enough without me adding fuel to her paranoia about being locked away."

She dispersed her computer, getting to her feet and padding across the living room to the doorway, heading up the stairs to the small room Ryoko called home. Ryo Ohki was sleeping peacefully on the end of her mistress's bed, and gently Washu ruffled her fur, alerting the creature at once to the fact she wasn't alone. The cabbit opened sleepy, confused eyes, sending a questioning look towards the scientist. Washu frowned, scooping the animal up and meeting her gaze head on.

"Ryo Ohki, I'm going to trust you with something, because I need a favour from you and I don't know who else to ask." She said softly. "But this is something you mustn't share with Ryoko. Do you understand? At the moment she's too emotional and volatile to take it in, and we have to be very careful."

Ryo Ohki let out a mew, pawing at her companion's hands, and Washu smiled, nodding her head.

"All right. We understand one another." She said gently, placing a finger to the ruby gem that adorned Ryo Ohki's brow. The stone glowed for a second, then faded back to dull red and Ryo Ohki opened her eyes wide, staring at Washu as if seeing her for the first time. Washu laughed.

"Yes. That's right." She agreed. "Now you know, don't you?"

Ryo Ohki licked Washu's fingers, rubbing up against them with a purr, and Washu's heart caught in her throat.

"Oh, you silly creature, you'll make me soppy." She scolded. "This isn't the time! Right now I need you to do something else for me. Can you do that, do you think? Without transforming, can you send out a signal across space?"

Ryo Ohki nodded her head, flicking her ears as she regarded her companion solemnly. Washu looked pleased.

"Good." She said quietly, placing the cabbit back down on the covers with a gentle pat of her head. "Then I want you to send a signal to Yagami. I need to speak to Kiyone and Mihoshi as soon as I possibly can. If something is going on with the Galaxy Police, Kiyone's bound to know something about it - or she'll be able to find it out. And I can't go to Jurai - not yet. Not till I know who the Tennans are associated with and how deeply involved that planet is in whatever has been going on on planet Earth."

She looked troubled.

"Because the Tennans have already led one invading party across the universe." She added sadly. "And I need to know they're not doing the same thing again before I reach out to Ayeka and Sasami...just in case history is repeating itself once more."


	3. Chapter 3

**Chapter Three**

"I would have had him!"

Seiryo clenched his fists, glaring up at the communication screen as he did so. "Tokimi, what were you playing at! I was perfectly poised to destroy that pathetic pirate and bring Tenchi Masaki in for you to interrogate! Why did you pull me out of there? I'm not a coward...a Tennan does not flee from battle!"

"Calm yourself, Seiryo." Tokimi's voice was gentle, amusement dancing in her blue eyes as she surveyed his ill-temper. "You are impatient. I have waited a good deal of time for my revenge - I won't tolerate a single mistake. Your mission to the Earth served its purpose...you may be sure of that."

"What do you mean?" Seiryo looked suspicious. "I thought you were going to be straight with me! How am I supposed to help you if you won't keep me abreast of what's going on? I risked my reputation today with this raid - what if my senior officers got to hear of it? What then? I followed your orders to the letter, Tokimi! Explain yourself!"

Tokimi let out a peal of laughter, shaking her head.

"I told you once that Tenchi has powerful protectors." She said softly. "That is why you sought him in the town they call Osaka, where those forces were not so vigilant. But we must tread carefully. Have no fear about your reputation, Seiryo-san. The Earth is remote. The Galaxy Police no longer have the basic forces to patrol it on a regular basis, and the officers you took with you acted under the lure of my magic. They won't remember their trip, so do not fret. Nobody will get to hear of your little visit there today."

"But why did you send me there and make me face that space scum Ryoko, if you didn't intend me to grab the Masaki boy while I was there?" Seiryo demanded, banging his fist down on the control panel. "I could have been hurt...killed, even!"

"Like your father?" Tokimi tilted her head slightly, fixing him with an opaque smile. "That would be a shame...a double tragedy in the Tennan family, and both at the hands of pirates."

"Tokimi, stop it!" Rage flared up in the young man's heart. "Can't you answer a simple question? Why did I go to the Earth?"

"You were charged with delivering a very special cargo to the planet's surface, and you succeeded." Tokimi told him softly. "I am pleased with the progress you have already made, and now I must ask you to return to Galaxy Police Headquarters. Your access to the files there is crucial - you must develop some premise under which Tenchi Masaki can be brought in for questioning...so that when I am ready to interview him, you can go and take him at a moment's notice."

"I could have done so tonight." Seiryo muttered sullenly. Tokimi tut-tutted, shaking her head.

"We'll do things my way." She said chidingly. "Patience, Seiryo-san. Trust me. I know what I am doing. I understand better than you the trickery and duplicity of Tsunami. We must understand our enemy before we can conquer her. And so for now we'll treat the Masaki boy with honey...not with barbs. One step at a time. My plan is unfolding nicely."

"I still don't understand." Seiryo dropped down into the pilot's seat with very bad grace. "What cargo did I take to Earth? I didn't do anything of the sort. I challenged Tenchi Masaki and the worm ran from me. And I fought his precious pirate, and would have slain her if you hadn't have pulled me away."

"Killing her would not serve our purpose at present." Tokimi looked grave. "It would incur the wrath of one I want to avoid...at least for the time being. Ryoko is powerful but she is no match for my magic. I can always dispatch with her at a later date should she prove troublesome to our progress."

"And the cargo?"

"Ah." Tokimi's eyes flickered slightly, and she smiled. "How many officers did you take aboard your ship when you left Headquarters, Seiryo?"

"Five." Seiryo looked bemused. "But..."

He trailed off, his eyes narrowing. "Hang on a minute. There were four officers when I attacked that Earth venue...and four that came back aboard when you withdrew us from Earth's atmosphere. What happened to the other one?"

"What indeed." Tokimi's eyes danced playfully. "That was your precious cargo, Seiryo-san. The one who looks like many and feels nothing."

"Zero." Comprehension flooded Seiryo's expression, followed by indignation. "You mean to tell me that robot was aboard my craft? And you didn't even think to tell me?"

"What use would it be for you to know?" Tokimi shrugged. "Zero had her own orders and she has carried them out magnificently so far. Like you and the grovelling Dr Clay, she has her role to play in this as well. Robot or not, she has a talent and one I can use to my own ends. She may not have emotions of her own, but she can duplicate them perfectly...enough to fool even a nobleman of Jurai, dare I say?"

She cast Seiryo a coy smile, and Seiryo growled.

"She didn't fool me."

"Yes, she did." Tokimi said with a shrug. "But then, she was designed to fool. I alone look at her and see her for what she really is - cold and barren and programmed to obey."

"And so she's on the Earth now...for what purpose?" Seiryo asked. "Or is that too top secret for you to share with me as well?"

Tokimi smiled, shaking her head slowly.

"You're lucky. Your insolence amuses me more than it does anger me, and I am pleased with you tonight." She said reflectively. "If it was otherwise, your poor sister might find she was having a more difficult time than she already is. You know she cries for you most pitifully, Seiryo - you wouldn't want to fail her now, would you?"

"Leave Suki alone!" Seiryo exclaimed, clenching his fists. "You promised you'd protect her if I helped you and I am! Let her be!"

"I have no interest in hurting your sister." Tokimi said gently. "But I am interested in ensuring your continued obedience to my commands. Don't question me as much as you are, Seiryo. I will make clear to you everything that you need to know. Everything else...let it lie. It's not for you to wonder about."

"So you won't tell me about Zero's mission on the Earth, then?" Seiryo looked disgruntled. Tokimi smiled.

"She is merely doing what she does best." She said softly. "Gaining someone's trust."

-----

"_And this just in. Last night a night club was set ablaze in the centre of Osaka during one of the busiest nights of the year. Eye witnesses report several strange occurances at the scene, none of which have been verified by local police, but the incident is being treated as highly suspicious. Police are asking anyone with any information to come forward._"

The newscaster's solemn face switched to a man on the street, a microphone shoved in his face as he stared wide-eyed at the camera.

"_There was this guy, and he set the whole place on fire...it was crazy and he came in a spaceship!"_ He exclaimed excitedly. "_And then this girl came and blew him away with magic! It was wild!_"

"_It definitely looked like a spaceship of some sort to me_." The tape cut to a woman, eying the screen thoughtfully. "_And they were dressed in a funny uniform. The girl flew...someone said she was some kind of guardian angel_."

"_I was scared out of my life!_" A third person confided. _"It was like demons had come to take us away!_"

Tenchi sighed, reaching across to flick off the television and for a moment there was silence. He cast a sidelong glance at his companion, taking in the preoccupation in her gaze. She had been like this since she had returned to the apartment the previous night, and the melancholy in her amber eyes tugged on his heart. She was not one to regret her actions, he knew that. But he knew only too well that she was regretting the previous night's adventures bitterly.

He reached over to squeeze her hand.

"It's all right, you know." He said softly. "Nobody there mentioned you by name and the cameras in the club would have been fried by that guy's fire - or in your ensuing battle. They'll probably put it down to some crazy new club drug or something...one that causes hallucinations. The club burnt down because something exploded in the back - that's all. They don't need to know any more than that."

"They already do." Ryoko spoke quietly, glancing at her hands. "So many people reporting the same thing? There's no way it's going to be dismissed. Besides, however that Tennan guy got in there, when the chaos has died down they'll find traces of the Galaxy Police fire bullets. Then questions will be asked. A lot of strange things happen, Tenchi...what if they dredge the lake behind your house and find the remains of Ryu Oh or the ship Sasami used when she first came to get Ayeka? Or bits of the original Ryo Ohki, for that matter. Those would be hard to explain away...and water can't hide everything forever."

"This is bugging you way more than it normally does." Tenchi frowned. "Usually I'm the one freaking out when something happens like this. What gives, Ryoko? It's not like you at all."

"I guess I'm realising how little I fit into your world." Ryoko grimaced. "I've tried, but I can't always keep my magic under wraps. It's instinctive to use it, especially when you're in trouble. And so I did. And now your friends think I'm a witch or a demon or both. It doesn't matter that noone said my name on the news. They've been introduced to me - they know my name. And anyone listening to Seiryo Tennan's diatribe would know who I was anyway. Ryoko. The Space Pirate. However you look at it, the cat's out of the bag."

"So what if it is?" Tenchi got to his feet, pulling her to hers and meeting her gaze with his. "Ryoko, last night you saved a lot of people from certain death. And you prevented that Tennan guy from abducting me to wherever he wanted to take me. You shouldn't be ashamed about that."

"But your normal Earth life..." Ryoko looked pained. "It's never going to be the same again, is it?"

"I don't think it ever would have been." Tenchi owned. "Not since Ryo Ohki first fell to the Earth. Things have changed. I've changed. And I've not been fair on you, either. You shouldn't have to try to be something you're not, any more than I should. When I was on Jurai, I felt stifled, trying to fit in with their expectations of me. But I've done the same thing to you...I'm sorry, Ryoko. You shouldn't have to hide who you are."

"But what happens to our peaceful haven here if I don't?" Ryoko questioned. "People will come looking for me, you know that. If not the Galaxy Police, then Earthly ones. And it'll be hard to answer their questions."

"We could try the truth."

"Or we could not." Ryoko grimaced. "Earth prisons couldn't hold me, but I don't want to be on the run or exiled from this planet. I like Earth. You know I do. And I want to be with you, Tenchi. This is your home, so it's my home too...at least, I hoped that would be the case."

She spread her hands.

"Now I'm really not sure I should stay in Osaka. At least the mountains are more remote...I might be safer there."

"We both might." Tenchi acknowledged. "But then that would suggest we had something to hide, wouldn't it?"

"We do." Ryoko smiled bitterly. "In case you hadn't noticed, I'm half responsible for the destruction of a night club in this city."

"Stop this." Tenchi scolded. "Where's the space pirate who doesn't dwell on the past? What's happened to her?"

"Right now she's annoyed with herself." Ryoko admitted. "You sound like Washu. She said I was fixating on this unecessarily - which is fine for her to say. Her destructive capabilities are scientific. She doesn't blast holes in places in the way I do - take away her computers and you take away her arsenal. She doesn't understand what it's like when you're instinct is to fight and defend yourself with your magic."

"Washu?" Tenchi looked startled. "Is that where you went last night? To see Washu? I was worried when I got back here and didn't find you."

"I went home." Ryoko nodded. "Washu was still up so I told her what had happened. She told me to come back here, so you knew where I was...or maybe she'd just had enough of me. I don't know. She's hard to read."

"What did she say about all of this?" Tenchi perched himself on the arm of the chair. "Washu may be a touch eccentric but she's sharper than most people. Did she have any ideas?"

"She said that she didn't think Seiryo Tennan was operating within Galaxy Police jurisdiction, because she's sure Jurai wouldn't allow anyone to come and grab you without their knowledge." Ryoko said thoughtfully. "The more I think on that, the more I think she has a point. I mean, the Galaxy Police suck up to Jurai a whole lot. Look how Azusa wangled my pardon out of them...they had no reason to buckle to that but they did anyway. They're twice as weak as they were before Kain destroyed Headquarters. They need to stay friendly with Azusa and his lackeys. And you're his great grandson."

"So who is Seiryo Tennan and is that even his real name?" Tenchi sighed. "If this whole thing was an elaborate hoax - why? What do they want with me?"

"Washu doesn't think that he did want you. At least, not really." Ryoko frowned. "She said that it sounded like a decoy...a way of distracting us from something else. Of course, she could be being paranoid. But I don't know...she might be right."

"Washu often is." Tenchi admitted. "I don't suppose she had any idea what that something else might have been?"

"Not a clue." Ryoko shook her head. 

Before Tenchi could answer there was a knock at the door, and the pirate shot him an anxious look, moving to get up.

"Police?" She asked softly. Tenchi shrugged his shoulders.

"Only one way to find out." He said simply, getting to his feet. "Relax, Ryoko, and try and act natural. Whatever it is, we'll deal with it together, okay? And you said yourself that Earth prison cells can't hold you. You shouldn't be afraid...they're the ones who need to watch out."

"I'm not going to attack Earth law enforcement." Ryoko objected, obediently sitting back in her seat. "I do want to stay here, you know. But all right. Go see who it is."

Tenchi offered her a smile, then withdrew into the hall, heading down the narrow corridor to the front door and flipping back the latch. He swung open the door, surprise flooding his expression as he recognised his visitor.

"Yume!"

"Hi, Tenchi." Yume offered him a genial smile. "Did I surprise you? I hoped you'd be home...the whole city is buzzing with the story of what happened last night and I wondered if you'd have left Osaka already."

"No...we just had breakfast, and saw the report on the news." Tenchi ran his fingers through his hair, pursing his lips. "The whole city? What do you mean?"

"I came to let you know what I've heard." Yume said simply. "May I come in?"

"Oh, of course." Tenchi smiled at her sheepishly, pushing open the door further to allow her into the apartment. "Sorry. Everything is a bit crazy here at the moment...as I'm sure you can imagine."

"Yes." Yume inclined her head, flashing him a gentle smile. "I understand."

"Through here." Tenchi indicated the way to the lounge. "Can I get you something to drink?"

"No...really, I'm fine." Yume shook her head. "But thank you."

Tenchi pushed open the door of the salon, leading the way inside and Yume followed him into the small, sunshiny room, pausing in the doorway as she registered the pirate's presence. Ryoko had stood at their entry, glancing the girl over with a confused frown.

"Who are you?" She asked warily. "And what do you want here?"

"Ryoko, this is Yume. I rescued her from the blaze last night." Tenchi explained. "Don't you remember? She came to your defence when the crowd was asking so many questions."

"I remember you." Ryoko pursed her lips. "You called me a guardian angel."

"That's how it seemed last night." Yume looked embarrassed, sitting down in a vacant seat. "I hope you don't mind me intruding on you like this. But I thought you should know what's going on in the city. Everybody is talking about the fire at the club...and what caused it. They're saying..."

She faltered, then pursed her lips, lowering her voice.

"They're saying it was aliens." She whispered. "That that man in his ship was the first sign of an invading force...and that nowhere on the Earth is safe."

"Well, right now we're as much in the dark as anyone else." Tenchi admitted. "And that's the truth."

Yume fixed Ryoko with a keen gaze.

"Some people are saying that you knew the man who attacked us." She remembered. "Is that true?"

"Seiryo Tennan? Never heard of him before last night." Ryoko rubbed her temples. "And that's the truth."

"They're saying he called you by name...and that he called you a pirate." Yume remarked. "And a lot of people are talking about the fact you flew...and shot fire from your fingers."

"Great." Ryoko sighed. "I told you, Tenchi. Nobody is going to let this be covered up. I've blown everything, as per usual."

"How do you know all of this, Yume?" Tenchi looked curious. "I hope you haven't put yourself at risk on our behalf."

"No." Yume dimpled. "But I'm good at finding out information. My father works at the local police department, and he's investigating the presumed arson case. I've picked up a lot of bits and pieces from him."

"Police?" Fear leapt into Ryoko's eyes and she sprang back. "So you're spying for him - is that it?"

"Of course not." Yume shook her head impatiently. "Father doesn't know that I was there last night and I've told him nothing. But you saved my life - both of you, in one way or another. And so I want to repay the favour. I know that whatever other people think, you were on our side last night. And if that guy was an alien, you fought him on our behalf. I'm not scared of you and I want to help. After all, he might come back...mightn't he?"

"He might." Tenchi nodded his head. "But right now that's not something we can predict. Like Ryoko said, we don't know who he is either."

"Do you think he was an alien?" Yume asked softly. Ryoko laughed hollowly.

"Define alien." She said flatly. "He was an agent of the Galaxy Police, or at least dressed up like one. He could have come from anywhere in the universe - although there was something very familiar about the way he fought."

Yume's eyes became big.

"You're serious, aren't you?" She whispered. "There really are people from other worlds out there! And...and they really might be coming to invade the Earth!"

"I doubt that very much." Tenchi said hastily.

"But she said..." Yume faltered, and Ryoko shrugged her shoulders.

"The Earth has had it's eyes shut for far too long." She said bluntly. "There's a universe out there. Your people just haven't reached out and touched it yet. And the longer they don't, well, the more vulnerable they are to hostile activity. The Galaxy Police have been assigned to this sector for generations to keep the peace...to protect people who have no way of protecting themselves. But if an agent of the Galaxy Police has turned against that obligation, who knows whether the planet is safe or not? The Galaxy Police are meant to have political neutrality...but in reality they're lapdogs for more powerful planetary groups. I don't know what last night was all about, but you can bet it wasn't good."

Yume blanched.

"You're kidding me." She murmured. "You're joking...aren't you?"

"No, Yume, she's not." Tenchi sighed heavily. "The Earth is not the only planet with life. It's just one with the weakest outer defences. People here have always focused on the ground rather than the sky and it's limits. People from other worlds have visited here for generations - flitting in and out without Earth being aware."

Yume fell silent for a moment, then her glance fell on Ryoko.

"And you?" She managed. "Are you one of them?"

Ryoko inclined her head.

"In a way." She said carefully. "I guess you could say I wasn't born in Japan."

Yume bit her lip, gazing from Tenchi to Ryoko in disbelief for a few moments. Then she seemed to rally herself, getting a grip on her composure and offering a faint smile.

"So there are aliens in Osaka." She said, her tone a touch unsteady. "I guess I can deal with that."

Tenchi smiled ruefully.

"I had the same reaction." He admitted. "But Ryoko isn't the threat. I don't suppose your father has any leads on the man who attacked the club?"

"No more than you do." Yume shrugged helplessly. "He's as clueless as everyone else. The name Seiryo Tennan keeps coming up, but they can't track down who or what he is. That's why the alien invasion theory is gaining so much momentum. This man doesn't apparently exist...and Ryoko-san, nor do you."

"Well, we'd appreciate it if you didn't tell him where he can find me." Ryoko said quietly. "I don't mean this world any harm...it's my home. Last night was crazy, but not something I want to repeat. I know how people feel about those who are different - seems it's the same here as on every other world I've visited and I've had my fair share of not fitting in already in my life. So keep your mouth shut, huh?"

"Don't worry." Yume's eyes flickered thoughtfully. "I think it's better if nobody knows we had this conversation."

She stood, stretching.

"I should probably leave you to yourselves." She added. "But I thought you should be aware of what's being said. And you needn't worry. I'll keep your secrets."

She reached out a hand, grasping Tenchi's firmly in her grip and squeezing it.

"After all, thanks to you I'm here." She said softly. "I'm still in your debt."

Tenchi shot her a startled look, then smiled, nodding his head.

"You're welcome." He said gently. "And thanks for coming here, Yume. With everything as crazy as it is, it's nice to see a friendly face. My college friends haven't exactly called since it happened, and it's good to know someone in Osaka doesn't think we bring the plague."

"You can count on me." Yume's eyes twinkled. "It's all right - don't get up. I'll see myself out."

She flashed Ryoko a smile, releasing her grip on Tenchi's hand and heading towards the door, disappearing into the corridor. There was the sound of the front door a few moments later, and Ryoko groaned, shaking her head.

"I don't trust her." She said at length. "The daughter of a police officer? What's to say she's not just recording everything we say?"

"You're the one who told her about the Galaxy Police." Tenchi pointed out. "Besides, I think she's on the level. She did stand up for you last night, you know. And we did save her life, she's right. You shouldn't be so suspicious, Ryoko. She means no harm."

Ryoko raised an eyebrow.

"And holding your hand like that, right in front of me?" She demanded. "What was that supposed to be, if not a challenge?"

"Ryoko, haven't we been through this?"

"Yes, but she wasn't around when we did." Ryoko pursed her lips. "Tenchi, that girl has one of two motives. Either she's trying to find out information for her father's case, or she's got a crush on you and that's why she came here this morning. You did save her from the fire, after all. Why else would she put herself out so much to come warn us what people were saying?"

"She might just want to help." Tenchi moved to the window, glancing idly down at the street below. Ryoko snorted.

"You're too trusting." She said, shaking her head.

"Or you're not trusting enough."

"Well, we'll see." Ryoko spread her hands. "But very few people do things without an ulterior motive, regardless of what planet they come from. You mark my words, Tenchi - that girl has a crush on you."

"Even if she does, it's not like I'm available." Tenchi reminded her, reaching across to grasp her by the hand. "I'm with you. And you know that. So it shouldn't bother you."

"It doesn't." Ryoko said slowly. "But I don't like her thinking that way. Just keep an eye on her, all right? I don't trust her completely...I can't put my finger on why, but just take my word for it. Yume has designs on you...I'm sure of it!"

---

In an alcove just out of view of the apartment building, Zero pulled herself into the darkness, glancing at her hands as a slow smile crossed her face.

"Tenchi Masaki." She murmured, running her index finger over the palm of her right hand. "As easy as that."

She leant back against the wall, closing her eyes as she processed the information she had so far, setting it out neatly in her mind as she ran over the events of the previous night.

"He did not use the Light Hawk Wings when he saved me - or I should say, _Yume_ - from the club fire." She mused. "I wonder why. I wonder why he let his pirate do all of the work."

She sighed, a frown touching her lips as she thought about Ryoko. Somewhere deep inside of her, a feeling of dislike stirred and she bit her lip, trying to make sense of it.

"What is happening to me?" She murmured, shaking her head as if to clear it. "Ryoko Hakubi is an irrelevance. She is not important to my mission. My job is to gain Tenchi's trust and I have succeeded. I am able to take data and DNA samples from him for Tokimi-sama and...and what?"

Another feeling lurched inside of her as she pictured his face, and despite herself, she found her conviction fading as she glanced down at her deceptively human hands.

"Tenchi." She murmured. "He was so good to me last night. So gentle...he stayed with me and took care of me, even though he didn't know my name or where I came from. Why does that make me so concerned? It's not logical. I should send these files to Tokimi-sama. That is my order and I must carry out all orders. Why do I want to hesitate?"

She swallowed hard against the sudden lump in her throat.

"This is stupid." She muttered. "I have a role to play and I will fulfill it. Tenchi Masaki is Tokimi-sama's target, and I will not let her down. I will discover the information she requires because that is what I am programmed to do and that is all that matters. And then I will speak to Dr Clay and ask him to remove these rogue, corrupted files that plague me. Tenchi Masaki is just another target, and I _will not fail!_"


	4. Chapter 4

**Chapter Four**

"Well, Washu, what is all of this about?"

First Class Detective Kiyone Makibi picked her way carefully across the rocky landscape, her expression quizzical as she greeted her companion. "I got Ryo Ohki's signal - but honestly, I thought it would be Ryoko waiting to meet me. What's going on - and why did you call me all the way out here? You have to know that it wasn't easy getting away."

"I'm sorry. You probably have six thousand things you need to be doing." Washu acknowledgd. "But I'm glad you realised the signal meant something important. And I'm afraid Ryoko knows nothing about this - not yet. Shall we just say things on the Earth have been eventful in the last twenty four hours? I hoped you might be able to shed some light on a couple of matters for me."

"Well, I can try." Kiyone looked confused, her gaze flitting from the scientist to the cabbit curled up on her shoulder. "But why do _you_ have Ryo Ohki? Where's Ryoko? And what about Tenchi and his family? Are they here?"

"Noboyuke-san is at work and Katsuhito-dono is at the shrine." Washu said serenely. "Tenchi and Ryoko are in Osaka, and Ryo Ohki and I are here alone. Which is how I wanted it. The fewer people who know we're meeting like this the better - at least at the moment."

"Washu, you're starting to spook me." Kiyone's frown deepened. "What's going on?"

"Follow me." Was all Washu vouchsafed, however, lifting a hand and beckoning to the detective as she crossed the terrain towards the house. Kiyone hesitated for a moment, then followed the eccentric woman inside, stepping into her laboratory with more than a few misgivings.

"So you're stationed back down here now?" She observed, glancing around her. "Full time, or temporarily?"

"Time will tell." Washu shrugged her shoulders. "Sit down, Kiyone. I know this all seems very cloak and dagger to you, but it might well be your safety as much as my own that's at stake should people get to hear about this meeting. Did you bring Mihoshi with you?"

"No, the department couldn't spare both of us." Kiyone flushed red, shaking her head. "I had to lie to the Commander and tell him a relative of mine had been taken suddenly ill. Mihoshi wanted to come, but she had to stay behind. She doesn't know that I'm coming here, exactly - but she knows that I had a signal from somewhere. I just hope she can keep her mouth shut while I'm away."

"Mihoshi is not as stupid as people like to believe." Washu said thoughtfully. "And I'm sure you can trust her to be discreet."

Kiyone raised an eyebrow, and Washu laughed.

"Well, I won't keep you long enough for her to tell anyone anything." She amended. "And besides, as you said yourself, she has nothing to tell."

"That's never stopped her in the past." Kiyone sighed. "All right. So I'm here. Maybe you better explain what you want from me...and why Ryo Ohki sent Yagami an emergency signal."

Washu cast a glance at the cabbit, who flicked her ears, letting out a mew. She shrugged.

"Well, I didn't ask her to go quite that far, but I did ask her to contact Yagami." She said thoughtfully. "And she might have been right. I don't know if it's an emergency yet, Kiyone. But it might become one, if nothing is done to check it. Tell me, do you know a man called Seiryo Tennan?"

"Seiryo Tennan?" Kiyone's eyes became big with surprise. "Yes, of course - or rather, I know _of_ him and his reputation. But I didn't know you knew him."

"I don't." Washu pursed her lips. "Tell me, what sort of a man would you say he was?"

Kiyone looked bewildered.

"I don't understand." She protested. "You call me here and then ask me questions about one of my colleagues...a superior officer? Washu, stop playing games with me! Tell me what's going on!"

"All right." Washu's eyes narrowed, and Kiyone was aware of the seriousness of her friend's gaze. "Last night a Galaxy Police craft piloted and commanded by a man calling himself Seiryo Tennan launched an attack on a nightclub in Osaka. An Elite Forces officer, no less. He was ostensibly looking for Tenchi, but when Ryoko challenged his authority, there was something of a scene. He left very suddenly, and the club is a complete ruin - burnt to the ground, from all I've managed to discover. Galaxy Police fire bullets...not Ryoko's magic. In fact, her interference probably saved a lot of human lives."

Kiyone blanched, and she shook her head.

"Impossible." She said frankly. Washu leant across to scoop up a folded newspaper from a nearby computer unit, unfolding it and holding it out to her.

"Well, you tell me what you make of that." She said simply, and Kiyone took the periodical in her hands, glancing at the picture of the wrecked nightclub. She scanned the article, her brows drawing together as she got to the end paragraph.

"I still think it's crazy." She said at length. "So what if someone blasted in there and claimed to be Seiryo Tennan? If you don't know him, and nor does Ryoko or Tenchi, he could have been anyone. An imposter. I'm sorry, Washu...I just don't believe this adds up. Seiryo Tennan is one of the most respected and capable of the Elite Galaxy Police...he's been awarded medals many times for his actions in service, and he graduated top of his class when he was at the Galaxy Police Academy. His reputation is legend at Headquarters - he's singlehandedly brought to justice more outlaws and troublemakers than any other agent in his division. Random raids on remote planets are not a usual part of his action plan."

She dropped the paper down on the unit, shaking her head.

"This is someone else's work, and an attempt to discredit the Galaxy Police. It must be." She added. "There are no officers on patrol in the Solar System at the moment, because of shortness of staffing. It would be easy for someone to slip in and cause trouble here without being picked up by our sensors."

"You think so?" Washu looked pensive. "Maybe you're right. See, there's more to this than I've told you, Kiyone. My laboratory is stationed here because it's stable and remote. I was forced to anchor it in one location because someone had managed to infiltrate it while it drifted between doorways. I know the man responsible - I picked him up on security film, or at least the insignia of his gown - but he was in the company of a shape-shifter. I haven't had a chance to review the file more closely, but he used this accomplice to access some of my most secure files. Files on Jurai's magic and on my creation of Ryoko."

"And you think the two things are connected?" Kiyone looked startled. Washu shrugged.

"Maybe." She admitted. "It seems too much of a coincidence for them not to be, don't you think?"

"Well, then there's your answer about Agent Tennan." Relief flickered in Kiyone's blue eyes. "If your thief had a shape-shifting accomplice, likely that's who came to the Earth last night. Most Earthlings wouldn't know a Galaxy Police craft from a fake and certainly wouldn't recognise our uniform. It's easy for panic and rumour to begin but all you have to tie this to Seiryo-san is his name...which isn't much at all, really."

"No, which is why I hoped you might help me." Washu mused. "You're right, of course, that on this planet the Galaxy Police badge means little. Except that Ryoko was there last night, and she has a better knowledge of your operation than most people. She was pretty adamant when she spoke to me that it looked like the real deal. I've convinced her it was a hoax - an elaborate one, but a hoax nonetheless, because she's afraid of being taken back into custody for breaking her parole. That's why I haven't involved her in this. She's emotionally unreliable at the best of times, so I haven't told her that Seiryo Tennan is a real Galaxy Police officer."

Kiyone's eyes narrowed as she digested this, thinking it over carefully.

"Tennan-san's department and mine don't cross over very much, but I have seen him from time to time at Headquarters, generally at a distance." She said slowly. "But not really of late. Do you think he could be in trouble? I mean, if someone is impersonating him..."

"It's possible." Washu got to her feet, crossing the laboratory to a big computer screen and keying in an override code. "See, I pulled this up - I presume you know about the murder of his father, Seiji, just a short time ago?"

"Yes." Kiyone inclined her head. "But I don't think Seiryo-san is the kind of Agent to let his personal problems interfere in his professional life. As I said, he's one of our most respected men, Washu. Men like that don't just turn vandal on the least excuse."

"Well, I hadn't thought about the shape-shifter, and you do have a point." Washu acknowledged. "But I don't know...there's something about all of this that bothers me. Recently I've taken readings from the Earth's atmosphere which indicate anomalies...as if something very powerful has been tweaking at the outer layer, shifting particles and changing the normal chemical values. Last night, those readings were once more off the chart...at about the time Seiryo Tennan - or the imposter - launched his attack on Osaka. They flared up again about the time Ryoko said the man and his ship vanished. That can't be a coincidence. Those changes tie this in with the man who robbed my laboratory - because he's wanted by the Science Academy. The night he escaped there, the same data anomalies were recorded by the Academy's master computer. There's got to be more to this. I just can't see what it is yet."

"Did you say vanished?" Kiyone looked startled. "As in what...a hyper-speed jump?"

"No...Ryoko described it as teleportation." Washu shook her head. "But on a major scale. Not just Tennan-san, but his ship and his accompanying officers. They just disappeared."

"But...Galaxy Police ships can't do that." Kiyone shook her head. "And I don't know of any officer on role who teleports. Most people were deeply suspicious of Ryoko when she was in custody because it was a talent she had. Some of them thought it was devil magic - and these were trained officers of the law! It's not a common magic...could she have been mistaken?"

"I don't think so." Washu shook her head. "As much of a flake as she can be, Kiyone, when it comes to battle tactics she knows more than most people, and if anyone understands teleportation, it's her. No, I think Ryoko's reported things pretty accurately this time...I just have to try and make sense of what she saw. It has to match the science somewhere - I just need a clue as to where."

Kiyone fell silent for a moment, running this over in her mind. At length she glanced up, a frown touching her face.

"Are they in trouble?" She asked softly. "Ryoko and Tenchi, with Earth authorities?"

"Not yet, but they may be." Washu replied. "If people make the connection between Ryoko and the girl people keep talking about. They haven't come back from Osaka yet - Tenchi telephoned his father this morning to say they were going to try and brazen it out and stay there another night rather than risk using Ryoko's teleportation or venturing too far out into the street, but I don't expect they'll be there for too long if there's a real risk of them being found out. I don't think either of them want to bring trouble here, but in the end I suspect they'll have no choice...and at least here is more remote than the middle of a bustling city. That's one reason why Ryo Ohki is with me. It began as an innocent enough trip, but now Ryoko is worried that if people see Ryo Ohki in Osaka, they'll make too many connections. There are no cabbits on the Earth, after all. Just her."

She reached up absently to scratch her furry companion under the chin.

"And of course, this man might yet come back...and if he does, Osaka is too obvious a place for Tenchi to be. I'm of the opinion that his raid was a diversion - a smokescreen for some other mission. But I may be wrong and he may come back for Tenchi. Whatever he wants, you can guarantee it's probably not good."

"Have you spoken to Jurai?"

"No." Washu shook her head. "And at the moment, I don't intend to. I know the name Tennan, Kiyone, even if I've not met Seiryo or his late father. Many, many years ago they had ambition enough to lead expansion parties across space. They invaded and looted many planets of their natural resources and built up a huge fortune as they went along. It's one of the reasons why they're such a rich and powerful Juraian family, even though they don't possess an iota of natural magic. I suppose it's not beyond the possibility that they're doing a similar thing again."

"Invading the Earth? But why? What has Earth got that Jurai hasn't?" Kiyone looked non-plussed. "I thought you believed in logic, Washu-chan. That doesn't seem very logical to me!"

"No, but not everything operates within logical perameters." Washu sighed. "As the recent events with Kagato-dono on Jurai illustrated for me very clearly. I'm not sure of anything, if I'm truthful. I'm just running over possibilities. Whilst I know Ayeka and Sasami wouldn't mean the Earth any harm, I have a lot less trust in their father and their uncle. They may seem like dignified and honourable men, but they've broken their own rules and laws before to get what they want. I suppose I can't help harbouring a little suspicion. After all, it's there in the Tennan family history, and there has always been a Tennan on the Holy Council of Jurai."

"Well, I think you're jumping to wild conclusions." Kiyone said matter-of-factly. Washu spread her hands.

"Perhaps." She acknowledged. "But right now, it's all I have."

"Is there something I can do to help?" Kiyone asked at length. "I mean, if someone is trying to bring the Galaxy Police into disrepute, I want to be involved in stamping it out. And I like the Earth - the people here shouldn't be used as pawns in someone else's battle, even if there aren't enough of us to patrol here regularly."

Washu's eyes lit up with hope and Kiyone began to wonder if she'd offered her help rashly.

"I mean..."

"There _is_ something you can do for me." Washu cut across her, nodding her head. "One _small_ thing, Kiyone."

"All right." Kiyone relented. "What is it, Washu-chan?"

"Keep your finger on the pulse at Headquarters." Washu said seriously. "And anything you can find out about Seiryo, well, the better. Either we exonerate him or we condemn him, but we need to know who we're really dealing with and if he and his family are involved in whatever is going on. Can you do that?"

"Spy on an Elite officer?" Kiyone's eyes widened. "Are you sure that's a good idea? I could lose my job!"

"No...you're too smart for that." Washu smiled. "And I have faith in you to find out the truth, whatever that is. I know you're loyal to the Galaxy Police, Kiyone - but I know that above all of that you're fair-minded. If you find something that's amiss, you'll let me know and you'll tell me it straight. I need someone to be my eyes and ears where I can't go myself. Will you do that for me?"

Kiyone sighed, rubbing her temples.

"I'll try." She said finally. "It's not as easy as you think it is, Washu - but all right. I'll do my best."

"I knew you would." Washu squeezed her hand, and Kiyone felt something being pressed into it. "Here. Attach this to Yagami's comm channel and it will transmit direct to my lab here. Thank you, Kiyone. I'm counting on you to root out the truth!"

Kiyone opened her hand, glancing down at the small microchip. She bit her lip.

"What have I got involved in now?" She murmured, more to herself than her companion. "God help me if anyone finds out I'm turning spy against someone like Agent Tennan!"

--------

The Earth was a strange place.

Zero picked her way slowly between the rows of houses, pausing occasionally to gaze up at the tall blocks of flat that soared up towards the sky. She frowned, biting down on her lip as her gaze drifted to the stars beyond.

"Tokimi-sama." She murmured. "Oh, I don't understand this! Nothing in my databanks explains why she should have had such a violent effect on my circuits, but since the meeting with her none of my units have been operating correctly. I'm thinking and feeling too much like one of the Earth people, and I don't like it. Dr Clay will have to look at my program and see if he can eradicate all of this corruption from my files. It must have been a high level of radiation - but I cannot find any data readings to explain it."

"_Zero_."

At the sound of his voice, she stopped in her tracks, her eyes flickering with uncertainty as she gazed wildly around her. There was noone there, and she berated herself for the surge of alien fear that had shot through her system.

"Dr Clay?" She focused her transmitter on sending the signal. "What do you require?"

"_Lady Tokimi is impatient_." Clay's words reverberated around her core program, causing her to wince involuntarily at the unfamiliar vibrations. "_Submit your report. Now_."

Zero hesitated for a split second, as memory of the night at the club flashed back through her head.

"_Zero!_" Clay's voice rang with impatience, and Zero swallowed her misgivings, a look of determination flashing into her pale lilac eyes as she processed the instruction. Tensing every sense in her manipulated form, she flickered out of view, shooting her molecules towards the Earth's upper atmosphere.

"I am ready to make my report, Dr Clay." She said soberly. "I have encountered the man, Tenchi Masaki Jurai. I have made his acquaintance and have gained his trust."

"_And the biological samples_?" Clay sounded somewhat mollified at this. "_Lady Tokimi has informed me of all she asked you to do. You must obey her every command, Zero, as if it came from me. She is not one to be argued with. Do you understand_?"

"I understand, Doctor." Zero bowed her head, as if to hide her doubts and her fear from her creator. "I will obey Tokimi-sama. I have taken some skin samples from the subject."

"_Good girl_." Now Clay's voice was approving, but somehow Zero was not comforted as she usually was by her master's pleasure. "_And what have you found?_"

"Preliminary examination indicates that Tenchi Masaki Jurai has the biological structure of an earthling and a Juraian." She said quietly. "He is born of both worlds, Dr Clay."

"_Yes, we know that_." Clay agreed impatiently. "_And of the Light Hawk Wings? Of Tsunami? What of that_?"

"I am unable to detect magic in Tenchi Masaki Jurai of the nature Tokimi-sama seeks." Zero said slowly. "He does not seem magical to me."

"_Well, you are just a foolish robot, and you have your limitations._" Clay snapped. "_Return to the Earth and take more detailed samples. I will collect them from you and analyse them myself_."

"Yes, Doctor."

"_I trust you won't find that difficult_?"

"No...no, Dr Clay. I have gained his trust." Zero fought to keep her voice level. "He believes I am the earth girl Yume, who he rescued from the fire at the nightclub."

"_Then it should be no problem to obtain the data that we require._" Clay sounded relieved, and Zero realised that Tokimi had put pressure on him already that evening. The realisation surprised her - she had never before intimated anything about the rapport between Clay and his mistress, nor questioned any part of it. Uncertainty flooded through her, and she fought to keep it under control, fear flickering in her humanoid eyes.

"Dr Clay, I must speak to you. I fear there is an error in my program. Not all systems are operating correctly." She began.

"_Zero, this mission is of the utmost importance and there's no margin for error or failure_." came back Clay's reply. "_I don't have time to nanny a droid. Just obey my - and Tokimi-sama's - instructions. Everything else you can leave to us. Just get us the samples we need and keep close to Tenchi Masaki. I'll be in touch again soon...and await your next report._"

With that the contact was abruptly broken, and Zero found herself once more alone. For a moment the isolation washed over her, then she got to grips with herself, forcing her programming back into an even pattern as she slowly returned to the Earth's surface.

"He's right." She told herself, though her thoughts lacked some conviction. "All I have to do is obey my instructions. That's what I'm programmed to do. It's not right to question it...I'm programmed to obey Clay and if he supports Tokimi's orders, then I have no reason to have doubts. I must complete my mission. That's all there is to it. It's simple. Really."

She dropped to the ground, walking slowly back through the deserted streets towards the burnt out ruins of the nightclub. The venue was surrounded by police tape, with earth officers stationed at convenient points across the location, and she decided it would be better to keep her distance, so as not to be seen.

As she stared at the blackened rubble, she began to replay her video of that evening across her sensors. A frown touched her lips as she paused the recording, taking a moment to consider the scene.

"He didn't know who I was, but he helped me anyway." She reflected. "He didn't know that fire can't destroy me. And it can hurt him, yet he turned back to rescue me."

She frowned, forcing the image out of her head as she turned her back on the damaged club.

"It doesn't matter, anyway." She told herself. "It suits Tokimi-sama's purpose that he did, because it gave me the chance to involve myself in his life. That is why I am here."

She walked on through the city for a while, taking in little of the surrounding scenery as she mulled over the conundrum. Try as she might, her mind kept getting drawn back to the night of the fire.

"Perhaps I have a looped file in my database." She decided at last. "Whatever it is, it's confusing me and distracting me from my purpose. I should erase the memory. It is not important to keep an account of my arrival on the Earth."

Absently she shunted the file across to be erased, but before she could do it, something made her pause. She stopped, biting her lip as she slowly returned it to its original location.

"What's wrong with me!" She muttered. "Why does this file matter? Why does any of it matter? I have never had this problem before!"

"It's awful late to be out alone at night, girlie."

A voice up ahead startled her and she glanced up rather like a rabbit caught in car headlights, afraid that someone had overheard her heated conversation with herself. Three young men stood blocking her path, all well built and stocky and the tallest of the three - the one who had spoken - carried a knife in his thick fingers. At a signal from him, his accomplices advanced on her, grabbing her by the arms and holding her tightly to the spot. She stared at them, not comprehending what was going on.

"You shouldn't be out this late. The aliens might get you." The leader sneered, leaning close to her as he met her gaze with a challenging one of his own.

"Let me go!" At last Zero managed to get a signal through to her vocal units and she struggled against their grip. "You have no right to touch me. I am on important business and it does not concern you!"

"Oh, it doesn't concern us, boys." The leader laughed. "What a shame. And I was so hoping we might spend a little more time getting to know one another. Guess I'll just have to rip you off right now, huh?"

He raised his knife, holding it to her throat, and Zero saw the steely glint in his eye.

"Your money, or you die." He said, all humour gone from his tone. "I mean it."

"Let me go, or you will regret it." Zero said coldly. "I have none of your money."

"Final warning, girlie." The blade of the knife pricked against Zero's throat. "Money, or you get it. I don't bluff. We don't like any trouble, but we're plenty able to give it."

"You will not interfere in my plans." At last Zero found the right file in her database and she seared upwards, flinging the man off her as she launched herself into the sky, pausing some feet above the startled youths and glaring down at them.

"You make a mistake, trying to interfere with what we do here." She said flatly. "You will be the ones to die."

"Hey...she's one of them! One of the aliens!" One of the young men exclaimed, taking a step backwards.

"There ain't no such thing as aliens, bonehead!" His leader hissed, though Zero could see the doubt in his own eyes. She smiled a hollow smile, raising her hands and engulfing them all in a white beam of light.

"You will be terminated." She said softly.

"Please...lady...whatever you are! We meant no harm!" Now the bravado of the youths was gone, and one of them dropped to his knees, clasping his hands together as he pleaded for his life. "Please. Let us go. We...we didn't mean to bother you. Just a game, that's all! No need to get violent on us now!"

Zero eyed them all for a moment, narrowing her gaze as she surveyed them each in turn.

For a moment, nothing moved. Then she let out a sigh, and the beam of light wavered and faded.

"Go." She said quietly. "But do not come here again. If I see you, I will make good on my promise. Do you understand me? Do not interfere in what we do."

"Hey, message received, loud and clear!" The men scrambled to their feet, knocking one another over in their hurry to escape, and for a moment Zero watched them go. Then she flickered out of view, re-materialising herself on the street outside Tenchi's apartment building.

As soon as she realised where she was, her anger faded and she frowned, kicking idly at the pavement as she wondered what exactly he was doing inside there.

"I must not fail Tokimi-sama." She muttered. "But now I have left witnesses...I should have terminated them. Why did I not? Is it because I know he would hate me, if he knew I killed people from his world?"

She gazed up at the floor she knew Tenchi's apartment was on, her gaze softening as she noted the light blaring from the bedroom window.

"Maybe he _is_ why." She murmured. "Perhaps _this_ is the power of the Light Hawk Wings."

She sighed, Ryoko's image flitting across her memory banks and she leant back against a nearby wall, contemplating.

"I need to get her out of the way. He trusts her too much and I don't think she's as convinced by Yume as he is. She may yet be a problem." She mused. "I must find a way to dispose of Ryoko Hakubi."

A slight smile touched her lips.

"It will give me great pleasure to eliminate her." She added. "And I think I know just the way to do it."

Her gaze drifted to a news-stand, the day's headline still boldly announcing the potential alien threat, and a low chuckle escaped her lips.

"Well, that should pose me no challenge." She murmured softly, glancing down at her hands as they glimmered and shifted into a new form. "Everyone is looking for this mystery woman, but I know more about her than she could even imagine.Information that could yet prove useful to these people. Dr Clay programmed me well, after all. I know exactly how to act. Ryoko Hakubi will be eliminated - and this time, there will be no suggestion of extra-terrestrial involvement!"


	5. Chapter 5

**Chapter 5**

There was a cold wind whipping across the gentle Juraian landscape that morning.

Sasami pulled her thick, finely woven cloak more tightly around her shoulders, stifling a shiver as she padded purposefully through the grasses and ferns towards the most sacred and restricted area of the Royal grounds. As she neared the ornate fencing that marked the boundary between common land and the sanctuary of the Royal Trees she paused, bowing her head and pushing her hands together as if in prayer.

For a moment, nothing moved. Then she let out a heavy sigh, walking forward and resting her hand on the big oaken gate. It swung smoothly back beneath her touch, and she set her teeth, slipping silently through the sleeping ground of some of the oldest trees on the planet Jurai.

As a tiny infant she had loved to play hide and seek here, often falling asleep curled in the roots of one or other of Tsunami's many children. But this time she was not here to play games. Her anxieties weighed heavily down over her as she continued forwards, only too aware that she had limited time to carry out her task.

Most of the household were still sleeping, but she knew that she would be missed as soon as they began to rouse, and she bit her lip. Her mother and father may have accepted her connection to Tsunami-kami-sama, but neither one of them liked it, and had all but forbidden her from actively seeking the Goddess's presence.

"But she's going to have to give me some answers, and this is the only place I can come and get her to speak plainly to me." She murmured sadly. "Even Ayeka doesn't understand, or she'd have realised how important it is that Jurai gets involved in this. I don't know who Tokimi is or why she really wants Tenchi, but I know that Jurai is a part of it and I need to know more. Ignoring Tsunami is a bad thing. Better I find out exactly what she knows as soon as I can…then I can start telling people and everything will work out and go back to normal again."

With that thought pushing her onwards, she passed by the austere, forbidding shadows of her parents' tree-ships, hesitating for a moment at the empty space where Ayeka's ship, Ryu Oh had once slept. Then, out of the corner of her eye, she caught sight of a glistening, shimmering dance of light and she turned, Ryu Oh's exile forgotten as she gazed fully upon the Tree of Life.

Tsunami's tree was the tallest in the Royal Forest, her rich green foliage spreading out over the boughs of her children and casting a mottled shadows across their leaves and the ground below as she surged taller and stronger towards the vibrant Jurai sun. At Sasami's approach, she sent out another bevy of strong iridescent light beams, and Sasami stepped forwards, holding out her hands to touch the rain-like rays as they glittered towards the ground. 

"Hello, Tsunami." She said softly. "It's me. Sasami. I've come to talk with you."

"Yes, Sasami-chan." The voice was soft and echoey, barely more than a whisper on the wind that still whipped through Sasami's hair, but as she watched the trunk of the old, strong tree began to haze and reform into the image of a woman. "I wondered when you would come here."

"I need to know what's going on." Sasami frowned, folding her arms across her chest. "Tsunami, I thought we came to an agreement after everything that happened with Kagato. You promised me that this was my life to live and that I would always be Sasami. How can I be that if you're always making me see funny dreams? I already don't feel like the Sasami I was before I took your ship to Earth to find Tenchi. Are you ever going to leave me alone?"

"You of all people should know that such a divide is impossible." Tsunami's ghostly form shook her head regretfully, sadness in her eyes. "You are Sasami, Princess of Jurai, but part of you is also part of me. It has always been that way, Sasami-chan. You are my sister…we are united through everything that we do."

"_Ayeka_ is my sister!" Sasami exclaimed. "And that's all! I can't always be your messenger! I want to be a little girl again – why won't you let me do that? What's so important this time that you have to interfere in my life all over again?"

"When Karasu's rocket fired a blast into my ship, you took the force of that blow. We took the injury together, and neither one of us was destroyed." Tsunami spoke gently, reaching out a hand and despite herself, Sasami was drawn to meet her fingers, feeling a buzz of energy beneath the wisened wood. "Didn't you stop to think about that? From the moment you were born, Sasami, you shared your life with me. Did you never wonder why you had no Royal Tree till now? Ayeka had Ryu Oh when she was very small. Yet you borrowed ships belonging to your father's fleet – and never bonded to any."

"I don't have the Jurai Power like Ayeka does." Sasami responded. "And I'm not Crown Princess! I didn't need a spaceship until now!"

She sighed.

"I wish I hadn't taken yours, sometimes. Now I'm worried about Tenchi and I'm frightened because of the things you made me see and nobody is listening to me! They don't want to believe that I'm talking to you and it's driving me away from my family! Tsunami, this isn't fair! How can I be your heir if I don't have the Jurai Power?"

"You are impatient to know everything." Tsunami chided. "And know it all at once. Right now, there are more important things than your relationship to me. As we grow, you will understand better how we are connected in all things, and you won't be afraid. But Tokimi's actions cannot be ignored. She is a threat to us, Sasami-chan. To you and I as we now are…and to your world of Jurai, that you love so much."

Sasami sighed, settling herself down on a straggling tree root as she gazed up at her ghostly companion.

"I'm not supposed to do things like this." She objected. "Even Ayeka doesn't have to think about saving Jurai all the time! Why do I?"

"Because you are me, and I am you. We are connected. That's why."

"Then un-connect us." Sasami begged. "At least until I'm older."

There was a long silence, and Sasami thought she saw tears glittering in the Goddess's eyes. She frowned, biting down hard on her lip.

"Tsunami?" She murmured.

"I can't change what's already been done." Tsunami said softly. "You don't understand. You come here to talk to me, but really, you talk to yourself. I am you, Sasami-chan. To part us would be to destroy us both. We can't be divided. We are one."

"To…myself?" Sasami looked confused. "But you're a tree…and a spaceship…and I can see you. You're older than me! And you…you're a Goddess…a spirit of the planet!"

"You've read the prophesies. You know that my coming was predicted by seers centuries before you were born." Tsunami replied carefully. "Did you never stop to consider the fact that from the moment you drew your first breath, you were destined to become Tsunami-sama? Oh, not in name – but in heart and in deed? You bear my appearance, Sasami-chan. You are my true descendant, even though I had no children in my life to pass my bloodline on to. You are a child of the planet Jurai, and that is why you exist. Jurai needs you and so do I. This is who you were always meant to be."

Sasami swallowed hard.

"What are you telling me?" She whispered. "That even before I was born, I was going to become you?"

"Exactly that." Tsunami's lips twitched into a faint, affectionate smile. "You are so much younger than Ayeka, Sasami-chan…and your parents did not intend on having a second child. Ayeka was gifted with the Jurai Power and bringing her into this world spent much of Misaki-denka's energy. You were born because I needed you to be. That is why you don't have the Jurai Power. You would never need it. What I will give you will be far greater than anything an Emperor of Jurai can wield. You are the spirit of Jurai, in your good nature and your zest for life. And because of that, I can speak to and help my people against threats to their survival. Isn't that what happened against Kagato, after all? Without you and I, Sasami-chan, Kagato-dono would have won."

"When I saw you in the future, you had taken over my body and I wasn't allowed to feel for myself." Sasami said bitterly. "I don't want that destiny, Tsunami. I don't want to lose myself in becoming you, just because you want me to. I want a choice…don't I even get that?"

"When we are one, Sasami, it will be by your will, not by mine." Tsunami shook her head. "I remain here, separating myself from you, because you are not ready to accept me yet. The future world from which I sent Nozomi no longer exists. The timeline has changed. You will not be forced to accept assimilation with me – on any terms. You are Sasami as well as Tsunami. I would not take that life from you."

Sasami eyed the Goddess warily for a moment, then she sighed.

"Do you promise?" She asked at length. Tsunami nodded.

"I swear it to you on the Heart of all Jurai." She agreed solemnly. "By yourself, you are already hope enough for this world. With my magic, you will be the one to protect it. And that is why you must heed me now. Tokimi is a danger to us all, and she must be stopped."

"All right." Sasami rested her chin in her hands, gazing up at the tree in resignation. "Then who is this Tokimi? She's not from Jurai, is she?"

"No, she is not. She is the Priestess of a planet called Kihaku, many light years to the south west of Jurai."

"Then what has she got to do with us? Why do you show me pictures of her? I thought you could only touch the children of Jurai that way."

"My telepathy and precognition connects me to all of my children." Tsunami agreed. "But your heart helps me to reach out to others, also. Those you have connection with are also within my sphere, now. And besides, Kihaku and Jurai share a history. Once, Kihaku was a colony of Jurai. The landscape is still littered with the empty shells of abandoned settlements and the hollow tree-stumps of my dead descendants. The pictures I showed you were from a time when Jurai's residency there was at it's peak."

"Those _I_ have connection with?" Sasami frowned, then, "But that's crazy. I never heard Tokimi's name until you put it into my dreams. And wait a minute – did you say Kihaku was a _colony_ of Jurai? But…did _Juraians_ do all of that? You showed me it being destroyed! Was that our fault?"

"It's complicated." Tsunami admitted. "You already know that Tokimi is connected to Kihaku the way that I am connected to Jurai."

"So we did hurt her planet." Sasami looked troubled. "Tsunami, I didn't know people from Jurai could do anything so mean to another planet! I thought we always helped other worlds, not hurt them! Why would we do something like that, and take away all of those people's lives?"

"Jurai's invasion did not cause the natural disasters you saw in the mirror pool." Tsunami said thoughtfully. "But their invasion of Kihaku did bring unrest among the ruling class. Tokimi was – or maybe is – the planet's surviving Priestess, and her soul is tied to that of her world. The angrier she becomes, the angrier her world becomes and vice versa. It is a vicious cycle. Maybe it was begun by the greed of Jurai settlers to steal mineral resources from Kihaku and give nothing in return. Maybe it was antagonised by the settlers' faith in me over the native spirit. Maybe it was Tokimi's own rage. It's hard to say. But storms still rage there as long as hate burns in Tokimi's heart."

"I see." Sasami mulled this over for a moment, her eyes shadowed. "So if you were to get really, really mad at someone, Tsunami, would all of those things happen to Jurai? And what about if _I_ do? Because if I'm you and you're me…could I kill everyone here just by being upset?"

"No." Tsunami shook her head. "To begin with, it isn't in your nature. I know you better than you probably know yourself, and I know that you could never inflict such pain on anyone, no matter how angry you became. And, perhaps more importantly, I am blood of this world, and you are blood to me. Tokimi is not blood to her world. She was never meant to be the Priestess of Kihaku. That honour was forced upon her and she was not prepared to handle it. That's all."

"And now she's after Tenchi?"

"Tenchi is in danger so long as Tokimi pursues him, knowing that he is a Prince of Jurai and that, in his battle with Kagato, he used my magic to triumph." Tsunami agreed. "Sasami-chan, Jurai must become involved in this before it's too late. Tenchi-sama is no match for a crazed Goddess such as Tokimi, even a false goddess. And the Earth has no defences to speak of. I fear the outcome, if we do not play a part in this. I'm afraid you must once more carry my word to the Emperor." 

"Do you think Uncle Azusa will listen to me?" Sasami looked doubtful. "He might believe that we're connected, but he and Mother and Father still think they can protect me and he wouldn't like it if he knew I'd come here to speak to you like this. He'd more likely be cross - and even Ayeka said there wasn't enough information to act on. She at least believes in me. Tsunami, why can't you speak to him yourself? Maybe he'd listen to you."

"I can't." Tsunami shook her head. "Only you can see my form within this tree. I can bless the others, but I cannot speak to them. I can only speak to you, because we are connected."

"You spoke to Nozomi!" Sasami objected. Tsunami sent her companion a gentle, affectionate smile.

"Nozomi was sent here by my magic, to obey my wishes." She corrected gently. "She was outside of this time - operating purely on my instruction. That's the only reason why she was able to speak to me like this. She was my messenger...my magic preserved her life and kept her heart beating until she had served my purpose here. That's all."

"So you _did_ send her here to die!"

"Nozomi's existance doesn't rest in my hands." Tsunami shrugged her shoulders, a smile on her face. "So you know that that's a futile question. I sent her here to help save Jurai and she did so. You must not concern yourself with her fate. If she is meant to be, she will be...and that is all there is to it. It's far too soon a time to know the answer, one way or another."

"What about Tenchi?" Sasami frowned, her brows knitting together as she ran over the options in his mind. "Uncle listens to him. Could he speak to you? He did make Light Hawk Wings so he does have some of your magic. Could he try?"

"Tenchi-sama is not here."

"No, but if he was to be?"

"I don't know." Tsunami admitted. "Lord Tenchi has never tried to speak to me like this, and in some ways he is an enigma even to me. He is part Earthling, and that part of him is concealed from me. I don't know the answer to your question, Sasami-chan. I don't know if he can speak to me the way you can."

"And I thought you were supposed to know everything."

"Sarcasm is Ryoko's defence, Sasami. Not yours." Tsunami chided gently, and Sasami frowned, running her fingers through her thick loose hair in her agitation.

"I'm sorry." She said slowly. "But it all seems so much. I'm just a kid, Tsunami - just one kid!"

"You're the spirit of this world, and you will understand more as you grow what that means." Tsunami assured her gently. "For now, know only that I need you and so does Jurai. Do you have faith in me to protect this planet?"

"Of course." Sasami looked surprised, nodding her head. "The trouble is, you always find such crazy ways to do it and people I care about wind up in trouble."

"If you think about that, you'll realise the logic behind it." Tsunami smiled. "But there is time enough for those things. For now, just speaking to Ayeka-dono and the Emperor will be enough to start the ball rolling."

"There's nothing else you can tell me about Tokimi?" Sasami asked at length. "In my dream there was a man and another girl - are they important too? Are they working with her also? Or...why did you show me that scene? It must mean something. They always have before."

"The man was Priest of Kihaku, before he died and Tokimi inherited his coronet." Tsunami responded. "And the other girl was his daughter...the heiress of Kihaku and the one who should have become Priestess in his stead. I'm surprised that you ask me these questions, though, Sasami-chan. I would have thought that you needed no explanation."

"Why not?" Sasami looked mystified. "I don't know these people and I've never heard of Kihaku! Why would I know anything about the people from a planet which died out..."

She faltered, as shards of another conversation flitted unbidden into her head, and her eyes became big with surprise.

"A planet that died out because of colonisation and invasion." She whispered, staring up at the Tree as comprehension flooded her expression. "Tsunami, how many forms can one person have? And why is it that so many of your fears, warnings or hopes lead back to the same root source?"

Tsunami's smile widened, and she spread her hands out in front of her as beams of light littered the forest floor once more. Then, in a moment, the light faded and the tree was just a tree again, the human form disappearing back into the hard, wrinkled wood. Sasami got to her feet, putting her hand to the trunk, but there was no answering light show, and she sighed, leaning back against it as she contemplated what she had learnt.

"I wish she'd stop answering one question and giving me seven more." She muttered. "If we're going to be one person one day, she could at least stop keeping secrets from me now. And how can I go to Uncle Azusa and demand he get involved in something which I don't even understand completely myself? My head hurts...this is so confusing!"

"Lady Sasami?"

At the sound of the voice Sasami turned, consternation flooding her features as she registered the fact she was no longer alone.

"Kamidake." She murmured. The knight bowed his head respectfully, approaching the princess and standing a few feet from her as he gazed up into the branches of the Royal Tree.

"Did she give you words of wisdom, Sasami-denka?" He asked softly. Sasami looked startled.

"How did you know I came to speak to her?" She demanded. Kamidake sent her a crooked smile.

"Because I am very familiar with the legend of Tsunami, my Princess." He said simply. "When Azaka and I served the Emperor, so many years ago, those myths and legends were the most popular ones to be told. In a time of strife, all Juraians hope to hear Tsunami's heart beating again, and to see the Goddess come to their aid. But she never has, until now. She's slept a long time, hasn't she?"

"Did Ayeka tell you something about Tsunami and I?" Sasami looked confused. "I don't think I...did I?"

Kamidake laughed, shaking his head at her confusion.

"I'm not a simpleton. I can see the signs as well as any other citizen of this planet." He assured her. "Besides, Azaka and I have always known there would be a second coming of the Goddess. When we relinquished our spirits and went into deep sleep, we were protected by Tsunami and preserved so we could wake again to serve the next Emperor who needed us. We knew that, when this happened, it would be in an hour of great need. I did not know at first that it was you, Sasami-hime, but I suspected it might be. The castles in which we trained and swore allegiance to our captains and our Kings were swathed in tapestries and images of Tsunami-kami-sama. You look a lot like her...it was too close to be a coincidence. And now...I am sure."

"But I look like my mother." Sasami faltered. "Why didn't you think _she_ was Tsunami?"

Kamidake was silent for a while, then he smiled, spreading his hands.

"I have every respect for Lady Misaki." He said softly. "But she is not you."

Sasami fell silent at this, a frown touching her pretty face.

"Then you knew I was gone from my room this morning? And you followed me here?"

"I didn't follow you, but yes, I knew you had gone." Kamidake nodded his head. "I knew you had that dream the other night, Sasami-hime...and I heard you talking aloud before you screamed. I thought you were talking in your sleep - but when I heard you yell I came to make sure you were all right. You looked like you were...not of this world. And so I knew it was Tsunami reaching out to you again. Like she did before."

"Father has tried to hard to keep it within the family." Sasami raised her face to his gentle one, offering him a slight smile. "But I don't think I mind that you know, Kamidake. After all, you are there to protect us, like you said."

She turned, casting a glance back towards the entrance of the forest.

"I should get back, before someone else notices I'm gone and raises the alarm." She added. "They won't all know to look for me here, and it's somewhere I'd rather Father and Mother didn't find me. I know I need to speak to Uncle and to Ayeka again, because Tsunami asked me to. But I have to work it out in my own head first. I don't understand everything she tells me, Kamidake, or why...but I think it means Jurai is in danger. And that means I have to do something - even if I don't understand yet what."

"I will accompany you back to the Palace." Kamidake said quietly. "If anybody should question your early rising, perhaps we can tell them you took a walk, and I came with you to ensure your safety in the grounds."

"Thank you, Kamidake." Relief touched Sasami's face. "Yes. It's not a complete lie and if you're with me, they won't be so worried. After all, you've almost become my personal guardian in the last few weeks - ever since I went sleep-walking into the royal vault, in fact. Father wouldn't object to me getting up early so long as he thought you were looking after me."

"Then so it shall be." Kamidake made his bow to the princess again, but Sasami laughed at his formality, taking him playfully by the hand and pulling him towards the entrance to the forest.

"I feel better, now I'm not alone and the clouds are starting to clear." She said decidedly. "And maybe Ayeka will have a way to convince Uncle, if I tell her everything that Tsunami told me. She's smart, and Uncle listens to her because she's grown up and Crown Princess now. She'll know what to say...and then everything will be all right!"


	6. Chapter 6

**Chapter Six**

"And so the madness spreads."

Ryoko gazed down at the barren city streets, her heart heavy as she settled herself more securely on her perch atop the apartment building roof. As she watched, she saw people hurry down the road, disappearing into buildings with an anxious glance behind them as they bolted the doors behind them. The morning's papers had been full of the latest news - and Ryoko had gathered at a glance that the local police had very little to go on.

"No explanation for the earth folk." She said with a sigh. "Just the same story, round and round in circles. An alien came, he attacked the club, and another alien flew to the rescue. The Earth is being invaded, starting with Osaka. Maybe they're here already. Maybe there are more of them. Maybe the Earth is already in peril."

She frowned, kicking idly against the brickwork below her. "I should never have come to Osaka. Tenchi was right to be nagging me. I did let my instincts get the better of me and now I've caused all this madness. But I don't see what else I could have done about it. Washu had a point - that guy came for Tenchi, not for me. And whatever he did come for, there's been no sign of a second attempt yet. So maybe Washu's other theory holds water too. The question is, what was the real reason for him coming here? He must know that Tenchi is a Prince of Jurai, and noone at the Galaxy Police would be that brazen unless they knew they had powerful support behind them. Unless he wasn't really a Galaxy Police officer at all. Maybe it _was_ all some kind of trick. I wish I knew more."

She clenched her fists, staring up at the sky.

"And I wish I had Ryo Ohki here in Osaka with me." She added. "Even if it did make more people talk. I could take her and fly far from here until it all died down and everyone forgot about Tenchi's weird girlfriend Ryoko."

She grimaced, blurring her form as she teleported down to the empty streets below.

"This place was so busy a few days ago." She remembered. "But now it's becoming a ghost town. Noone wants to spend time out of their houses, just because of one reported alien sighting. Noone even has any pictures of me or of Seiryo - it's all hearsay. But sometimes, I suppose, that's the quickest type of news to spread."

She walked slowly down the streets, pausing to glance in at the windows of some of the nearby shops as she did so. Occasionally she caught the eye of someone inside, but more often than not the shutters were pulled down in a futile attempt to defend the property from any unworldly attack. Someone had sprayed the message, "Go Home Aliens" on a wall at the end of the road, and Ryoko bit her lip, walking stolidly past it as she turned into the main high street.

"I wish I'd thought to ask Tenchi where his university was." She muttered. "Then I could at least save myself a walk to get there. I think the sooner we get out of this creepy place the better. At least while people haven't got to the point of positively identifying me."

She sighed.

"And then there's Yume." She remembered. "Is she really on our side, or is she spying on us for her father? I wish I knew. Earthlings are strange. They don't seem to say what they mean, and they freak out at the least thing. You never know who your friends really are...I never realised that before. That it's all one big social pretence, just like on Jurai. It's just done in a different way, that's all."

She grimaced, rubbing her temples.

"Is there any damn planet in this universe where people don't judge you as soon as look at you?" She asked herself bitterly. "And am I ever going to go anywhere where they don't think I'm a demon and a witch if I use my magic? Even the Juraians thought I was evil because of what I could do. No wonder Tenchi was so hot on me keeping it a secret while we were here. I had no idea Earthlings were like this. They always seemed to be so nice...so accepting. But I guess that's just Tenchi's family. Figures."

"Ryoko Hakubi!"

At the sound of her name, Ryoko froze, her body instinctively tensing as her gaze flitted from one side of the road to the other, trying to locate the speaker. She could see noone, but the sound of footsteps behind her told her that whoever it was had snuck up on her from behind and, half-expecting to see the Galaxy Policeman in all his regalia, she whipped around, raising her hands from her sides as she poised herself to strike. As she did so, however, surprise flooded her features, followed by consternation. A man stood there, dressed in an unfamiliar, heavily armoured uniform, with a gun in his hand and a determined expression on his face.

"You're surrounded." He said quietly, and from every corner and nook along the high street similarly garbed officers materalised into view. "I suggest you don't try any funny tricks, or sudden movements."

"What do you want with me?" Ryoko whet her lips, glancing from the captain to his accompanying officers as she realised that every window in the street was now occupied by the curious and frightened faces of the local population.

"Raise your hands above your head." The officer spoke softly, jerking his weapon in her direction. "Nice and slowly. I told you...no sudden movements. My men are trained to kill if necessary."

Slowly Ryoko did as she was bidden, and at a gesture from the man in charge, two of the officers approached her, weapons still unsheathed as they grabbed her by the arms, slipping cold metal cuffs around her wrists.

"We have some questions we'd like to ask you." There was a nasty glint in the officer's lilac eyes. "I suggest you come with us."

Ryoko bit her lip, for a split-second debating whether or not to risk using her magic in front of so many witnesses. At length, however, she sighed heavily, putting up no resistance as she was led away to a waiting patrol car and pushed roughly into the back seat. An officer clambered in beside her, his gun still trained on her, and the car set off across the city at pace. Ryoko glanced at the speeding scenery, her heart in her throat.

"Where are you taking me?" She asked.

"To be interrogated." Her companion told her gruffly. "We want to know exactly what happened the night of the club fire. We've been told you were there - by a lot of witnesses. Don't even think of trying anything! We intend to get to the bottom of this."

"There's nothing to get to the bottom of." Ryoko said frankly, fighting the urge to lose her temper and blow the car to pieces. "I was at the club, and someone started a fire. There were some explosions and a lot of gas. What has that to do with me?"

"Don't lie." The officer's eyes narrowed to slits, and Ryoko felt the gun pushed up against her ribcage. "We know what you are. You needn't expect mercy...our people are trained to deal with threats like you."

"Threats...like me?" Ryoko stared. The man flickered his eyes upwards.

"From outside." He said flatly.

Ryoko frowned, sitting back in her seat as she digested this. Her companion, seeming to believe he had subdued any potential insurrection also sat back, and the sensation of the gun-barrel was withdrawn from her ribs. Before long the vehicle pulled up outside a big, official looking building, many flags of different colours flying across the front entrance, and Ryoko found herself man-handled out of the car, forcibly led inside the building and through a long, narrow corridor to a tiny room at the very end. As she surveyed it, Ryoko's blood ran cold. However unfamiliar the location, she knew a prison cell when she saw one.

"Yes, you won't be blowing anyone up in here." Her companion seemed to relish her sudden uncertainty, giving her a violent shove into the room, forcing her down into one of the chamber's only two metal seats and fastening her wrists to the arms of the chair. He turned to the man behind him, saluting him sharply.

"She's all yours, sir."

"Good work, officer. Your tip paid off...I'll see you're rewarded."

"Just doing my duty, sir."

"At ease, officer - you may leave Miss Hakubi with me."

A tall, well-dressed man entered into the cell, indicating for the other officer to step outside and to close the door. He was as heavily armed and uniformed as his companion, but the pips across his shoulders indicated that he was of higher rank, and as he sat down in the seat opposite her, Ryoko was aware of the faint smell of tobacco on his breath.

For a moment he eyed her thoughtfully, his beady eyes running over her as he did so. Then he offered her a cold smile.

"Well. You're a lot prettier than the last prisoner I interrogated." He said quietly. Anger sparked in Ryoko's golden eyes.

"Keep your eyes and your thoughts to yourself." She snapped. "Who are you and why have you brought me here? What, exactly, am I supposed to have done? And how did you know my name?"

"You _are _Ryoko Hakubi?" The man regarded her carefully. "That's correct?"

"Who wants to know?"

"I do." The man leant forward, and Ryoko could feel his fetid breath on her cheeks. She turned her face away, and was aware of his amused laughter echoing around the cold metal room.

"We can make this easy or we can make it hard." He continued conversationally. "I already know your name...but it would be nice if you would confirm it for me yourself. It will save us both a lot of time."

Ryoko eyed him warily for a moment, her lips thinning. At length she nodded her head.

"My name is Ryoko." She said quietly.

"And you were present at the fire at the nightclub earlier in the week?"

"Me and about a hundred other people."

"Don't play games." The man shook his head. "I have the power to order your immediate execution, if you refuse to cooperate. Your kind are not welcome here."

"My...kind?" Ryoko stared at him. The man smiled benignly.

"Outsiders." he whispered. "Enough of the tricks, Ryoko. You don't exist. There isn't a single Earth record that bears the name Ryoko Hakubi. And yet, here you are. Funny, isn't it?"

"But..."

"And many people cited your unusual talents during the club fire." The man cut across her, his eyes narrowing. "You would do as well to answer me straight and save yourself a lot of pain and misery. Where are you from? Who sent you to this planet? Why are you here? What mischief do you hope to cause by infiltrating our society?"

"That's a lot of questions for a man who looks as stupid as you." Ryoko retorted coldly.

Her captor banged his hands down hard on the table.

"Answer me, or I will have you killed on the spot!" He exclaimed. Ryoko's eyes glittered with contempt as she shook her head.

"You don't know anything about me." She said softly. "And you're playing a very dangerous game, assuming that you do. My name is Ryoko and this planet is my home. It's where I belong, and that's all I'm going to tell you about me. Nobody sent me to do anything. I don't work for anyone. I work for myself and I have no agenda. I just want to be left alone. The other night, I only sought to help those who were already in danger - if you want to chase someone down, chase down Seiryo Tennan. He's the one who set fire to your precious club. Not me."

"So you admit that you are not of this Earth? That you possess other-worldly powers and that you could, potentially, cause harm to those around you by taking it upon yourself to play the vigilante?" The man's eyes gleamed. Ryoko sighed, shaking her head.

"Your weapons are useless against me." She said quietly, clenching her fists and pulling them upwards, bending and warping the metal cuffs until they snapped under her pressure. She rubbed her wrist absently, pursing her lips. 

"As are your restraints. If I wanted to hurt people on this planet, I would have already done so. I have no interest in fighting with you. Your planet is full of weak people who believe they're stronger and more important in the universe than they actually are. There are any number of super-powers who might choose to invade this world, but I don't belong to any of them. Earth is a backwater. Believe me, there are many better places that invading forces would seek to infiltrate."

Her captor's eyes widened and he fumbled with the radio on his belt, but Ryoko flicked a finger in it's direction, watching with little pleasure as it fizzled and died.

"I'm not going to hurt you." She said frankly. "But I think you should know that your pathetic attempt at a prison cell can't hold me. The Galaxy Police couldn't even keep me confined for long. Without their technology, you haven't a hope of keeping someone like me in custody. So if you don't mind, this has been very nice and all, but I have somewhere I'd rather be right now. And it isn't here."

Before her companion could react, she closed her eyes, focusing all her thoughts on the apartment in Osaka as the world blurred and changed around her. The exclamation of the officer faded into nothing as she opened her eyes, taking a deep breath as she took in the familiar surroundings of Tenchi's front room. She sighed, putting a hand to her chest as she gathered her composure. Then she hurried into Tenchi's bedroom, rifling through the top drawer of his cabinet until she found his plan of the city. Unfolding it, she spread it out on his bedcovers, running her gaze over it until she found what she was looking for.

"He knew way too much about me for it to be coincidence. I knew I should have been more suspicious of Yume." She muttered. "I bet she was behind this. And I need to get to Tenchi and warn him before he gets pulled into this as well. Osaka is no longer a safe place to be...and the sooner we get out of here, the better!"

------

The university campus seemed emptier than usual.

Tenchi glanced around him, a frown touching his features as he searched for the right queue to join. Registration was normally a merry, playful affair, with friends renewing their acquaintances and new students milling around the centre, confused by all the different signs. But today he had the sense that he was attending some kind of a wake. Those students who were there walked together in close knit groups, whispering in low tones to one another as they cast nervous glances to either side. A few of them stopped to stare at him as he made his way up to his desk, and his frown deepened as he overheard snippets of their conversation.

"He's the one." One girl murmured. "The one in the club...the one the alien was coming to get."

"Do you really think there are aliens in Osaka?" Her friend asked. The first girl cast another glance at Tenchi, then shrugged her shoulders.

"He came in a spaceship." She said frankly. "I'm telling you - they're here."

Tenchi turned his back on the women, setting his lips in a grim line as he made his way up to the desk. The man on duty cast him a smile.

"Name?" He asked.

"Masaki, Tenchi." Tenchi said quietly. The man skimmed down his list, marking the name off, and pushing a bunch of forms forward for Tenchi to sign. Tenchi glanced at them, scrawling his signature at the bottom of each one without really taking in their contents. Last year, he mused bitterly, he had been with Hiroshi and the others when they had signed up for the new year of classes. This year he was alone, and despite the fact there were other students bent on the same errand, he felt pointedly isolated.

Setting down his pen, he headed away from the table, ignoring the pushing, shoving lower year students that stared at him wide-eyed as he did so.

"This year is going to be a nightmare unless they find some kind of explanation for what happened the other night." He muttered. "Or unless I get to the bottom of it and make sure the Earth isn't going to have any more random raids. This has gotten crazy...out of hand. One little incident has been blown out of all proportion! It's even made the national news...I wonder if it's gone global yet. It wouldn't surprise me. The more the police drag their feet on what evidence they've found and the more eye witnesses that come forward, the bigger the hysteria gets. I hate this. Why don't people get a grip? I didn't react this way when I first found out there were people living on other planets."

He paused, rubbing his chin ruefully as he sat down on the outside wall, idly watching the crowds of students entering and leaving the university grounds.

"In fact, considering the damage Ryoko did to the house, I think I took the whole thing pretty well."

"Masaki-kun!" 

The sound of his name made him turn and he glanced up, a shadow touching his expression as he recognised Hiroshi, Sakura in tow. He frowned, shaking his head.

"I was just heading back." He began, getting to his feet, but Sakura put her hand on his arm, concern in her gaze.

"Tenchi, don't run away from us." She said softly. "We're your friends, aren't we? Talk to us."

"_Talk_ to you?" Tenchi raised an eyebrow, sinking back down onto the wall. "I wasn't aware that you'd talked to _me_ since the other night! My phone isn't off the hook, you know - who's not talking to whom?"

"We thought you'd gone back to the mountains." Hiroshi exchanged guilty looks with his companion. "And to tell you the truth, Tenchi, we didn't know what we might find if we called by your place. Everything was a bit out of this world the other night and well, we're trying to process it rationally but it's difficult. You have to realise that. I mean, hell, she _flew_!"

Tenchi met his gaze levelly, shrugging his shoulders.

"And that bothers you?" He asked quietly. "When she saved your life and Sakura's life and many many others by interfering?"

"What are you mixed up in, Tenchi-kun?" Sakura asked gently, sitting down on the wall beside him. "You can trust us. We want to help you."

"I don't need any help. And I'm not mixed up in anything."

"Masaki, he knew your name." Hiroshi said patiently. "That guy...whatever he was...he came to Osaka looking for you. Now, I didn't get a good look at his...transport. But Sakura and Kane did and they both said it was some kind of craft...a spaceship. Whoever he was and wherever he came from, it wasn't Osaka, and he meant business. Seemed pretty much like you were it."

"I never saw him before in my life." Tenchi sighed heavily, shaking his head. "I swear!" As Hiroshi raised an eyebrow. "I don't know who he is or why he came looking for me. That's the honest truth. He must have made a mistake."

"Some mistake." Sakura said fervently. "The club was totalled. Completely burnt out. The police have no leads and he just disappeared out of existance somehow. What else but some kind of extra-terrestrial ship could do that?"

"I have no idea." Tenchi shrugged. 

Sakura's eyes narrowed, and she grasped Tenchi loosely by the arm.

"But you _did_ know that Ryoko could do those things she did, when she flew and...the other stuff." She said softly. "Didn't you?"

Tenchi did not trust himself to answer. Instead he lifted his head, glancing up at the clear blue sky. Hiroshi sighed.

"You might as well be straight with us." He said at length. "You know that there are a lot of people looking for her."

"_Looking_ for her?" Tenchi stared at him, alarm in his dark eyes. "How do you mean, looking for her?"

"What I say." Hiroshi spread his hands. "She's the only lead they have to go on and while they've tried to dismiss what happened as mass hysteria, there are too many correlating eye witness accounts for them to completely ignore it."

"But why would they know where to find her?" Suspicion flickered in Tenchi's heart, and Sakura sighed.

"There are a lot of people that heard your mysterious invader refer to her by name." She said quietly. "And more who can give a physical description. It wasn't us, Tenchi, but to be honest, that's only because we weren't asked. I think that you're in over your head and that this femme fatale of yours is potentially dangerous. She's pretty enough, and I know you guys go nuts over a pretty girl. But she's not, well, normal. And...she might hurt any of us."

"She saved your lives!" Tenchi reacted angrily, pulling his arm away. "Why would you think she'd ever do anything to hurt you?"

"Anyone who can blow electricity from her fingers and emerge from a burning building without a scratch is someone you should be very scared of." Hiroshi said soberly. "Even if she's helped once, you don't know what might happen if she turns her temper on you. We just don't want you getting hurt, Tenchi-kun. That's all. We're looking out for you. Sakura's right. You're in over your head."

"I'm not in over my head." Tenchi shook his head, frustrated. "Why don't you understand that?"

Sakura looked pained.

"I know love is supposed to be blind." She said slowly. "But this is crazy. Tenchi, are you completely stupid? I know you don't do much of the dating, and that she probably swept you off your feet - maybe she even put some kind of spell on you. I don't know. But you have to open your eyes and realise how much danger you could be in! There are plenty of pretty girls in Osaka without you having to resort to this. Seriously! I mean, what in hell _is_ she, anyway?"

Tenchi fixed her with a cold look, standing up and gently pushing her aside.

"She's my girlfriend." He said softly. "And I'm not blind. Ryoko might not be like other people, but I don't love her because she can fly or shoot energy from her hands. I don't expect you to understand, because you haven't been through the things we've been through. But I'm not in any danger. If there's one person in the whole universe that Ryoko would not hurt, I know that it's me."

"I still think that you would be better off coming with us to the local police and telling them where they can find her." Hiroshi said acidly. "Before another nightclub goes up in flames. People could be hurt next time, and for all we know, there are more like her and the dude in that ship. We could be about to be invaded by some weird alien power - doesn't that bother you at all?"

"Nobody would invade the Earth. There's nothing here to steal." Tenchi said simply. "Give it up, both of you. If you don't like it, you don't have to speak to me or get yourself dragged into our fight. But I won't forsake Ryoko any more than I'd forsake any of you, if you needed me. She does, and I'm not going to turn on her. She's been through enough already. We both have. So if that's all you have to say, I'm going home. I've registered...and you should probably both make sure you do, before they close doors."

"Tenchi!" Sakura began, but before she could finish whatever she had been about to say, Ryoko flickered and blurred into view, taking the girl off guard and almost knocking her off-balance. Hiroshi's eyes widened, and he took a step backwards.

"You!" He whispered. "Have you been here listening, all the time?"

"What?" Ryoko stared at Hiroshi, confused, and Tenchi bit his lip.

"What's wrong?" He murmured, reading the agitation that flickered in the depths of Ryoko's amber eyes. Ryoko frowned.

"I've just had a run in with the local law." She said quietly. "I think it would be a good idea if we took a little trip, Tenchi. Right now, if you're done here."

Tenchi paused, glancing back at his friends and taking in their apprehensive, frightened expressions with a heavy heart. He nodded his head.

"I'm done here." He agreed, grabbing hold of her hand tightly. "Let's go."


	7. Chapter 7

**Chapter Seven**

"I must be insane."

Kiyone crept cautiously along the narrow, claustrophobic corridor, trying to ignore the flickering light of a dying bulb as she made her way towards the annexe that housed the Galaxy Police's Elite Force base. She had been here only once since the reconstruction of Headquarters, to attend a talk on covert operations by a head of department, but she was struck by the eerie similarities the new division bore to the halls that had been destroyed in Kain's blast. Many important agents had been killed that day, she knew, but many more had been on location during the tragic events, and had regrouped to form a strong and decisive backbone, sending operatives to every corner of the known universe as soon as they had been able to muster them. Now, many years on, the division was once more thriving and busy, full of people bent on their own agendas, and as she stepped through the entrance portal, pausing as her genetic structure was scanned and confirmed, she felt a slight pang of regret.

Once, she thought, she would have liked to have been an Elite. But her years as Mihoshi's partner had cost her many an opportunity to rise through the ranks, and now, after all they had been through, she could not see to abandoning her colleague completely. Even though their current duties went far and beyond those of the title bestowed upon them, Kiyone knew that she and Mihoshi had never really stopped being partners. And although their commander often placed them in positions of responsibility over newer, greener recruits to the force, Kiyone was painfully aware that Mihoshi's lack of discretion would forever disqualify her from the Elite division.

"But, crazy as it seems, I'm not going to leave her behind." She muttered. "And I wouldn't be here now if it wasn't for Washu and her ideas."

She passed through a series of tunnels, glancing at the names on the doors that she passed on her way. At the furthest end of the walkway was an open room, fitted with many desks and communication devices, and Kiyone knew that this was the hub of activity within the Elite base. Few officers from the regular division were allowed access so deep into the annexe, but Kiyone's reputation had gained her many priveleges over the years, and she knew she was going to have to abuse every last one of them if she was going to carry out Washu's wishes and spy on Seiryo Tennan.

She paused, glancing around the control room as she gauged her bearings. Seiryo had not been in situe the last time she had been here, and she was not sure where exactly his office might be based. Pursing her lips, she approached the nearest technician on duty, casting him a smile as she leant casually against his computer's thick, sturdy screen.

"I'm here to advise you there might be a power out on this floor in the next half an hour." She said lightly. "We've had some technical trouble in the main core, and your security might be compromised until they've fixed it. My commander sent me to tell you that you might want to shift your systems to the back-up. Just in case."

"A power out?" The technician glanced at her in surprise, then, "Don't tell me. Detective Mihoshi spilled her tea over another section of circuitry, didn't she?"

"How did you guess?" Kiyone laughed, inwardly sending Mihoshi an apology, for it had been she who had tipped the liquid over the main switchboard. "I'm sorry. They think it will be down for about an hour - maybe two - but I figured you'd want as much advance warning as I could give you."

"Appreciated, Kiyone-san." The technician returned her smile with a warm grin, pushing back his chair and getting to his feet. "Hey, code two-five-six, everyone. Mihoshi-san spilled her drink. Again. Everyone to unit five-oh-eight, pronto. We need to shunt charges across the switchboard before the power outage reaches down here and opens our files to hackers."

"Wretched Mihoshi." The woman to his left pulled a face, getting to her feet and kicking her chair beneath her desk with very bad grace. "That's the third time in a month. Kiyone-san, how do you manage to live with that woman and not throttle her? She's a disgrace to the whole force!"

"She's just a little clumsy." Kiyone spread her hands.

"Mihoshi-san's clumsiness could kill all of us one of these days." Another man put in gloomily. "Oh well. At least we're getting pro at shunting these things over. We should have it done in ten minutes. Fifteen, tops. Come on, everyone. Whilst the shields are still up - we don't have all day."

Muttering and grumbling, the five technicians on duty headed down the corridor on the right, the sliding door hissing shut behind them as they hurried to move their security systems onto the back-up server. Kiyone cast a troubled glance in the direction they had gone, then moved around the other side of the terminal, hovering her hand tentatively over the keys. She cast one more glance behind her, then set her teeth, slowly typing in a sequence of numbers. A plan of the annexe flashed up on the screen and, still on edge, Kiyone scanned it feverishly, hunting for the location of Seiryo Tennan's office.

"Who are you?"

A voice startled her, and she jumped, almost knocking the keypad off the unit in her hurry to shut down the plan. She swung around, her eyes opening wide with alarm and consternation as she recognised the subject of her search. Seiryo eyed her coldly, folding his arms across his chest as he ran his gaze over her.

"I asked you a question, Detective." he said softly, a hint of menace in his tones. "Or don't they teach you how to speak to your superiors in the regular division any longer?"

Kiyone flushed red, raising her hand in a salute as she struggled with her composure.

"My apologies, sir." She faltered. "You made me jump."

"Evidently." Seiryo glanced around the empty control room, then back at her. "Your name?"

"Kiyone Makibi. Detective First Class." Kiyone gabbled, inwardly cursing her lack of composure. Seiryo raised an eyebrow.

"Kiyone Makibi, is it?" He mused softly, rubbing his chin as he mulled over this information. "I know your name, Detective. They seem to think that you would make a good Elite Officer, if you had only had the right training."

He raised his hand, gesturing to her that she could drop her salute, and Kiyone lowered her hand, biting her lip as she surveyed him.

"What brings you to our happy home?" Seiryo cast her a keen look. "And where is everyone else?"

"One of our detectives had an accident with the circuit-breakers up on Delta Seventeen...a spilled drink in the electronics." Kiyone dragged her thoughts back into some semblance of order, offering him a rueful smile. "The commander sent me here to pass on the message, so that the technicians could transfer the security shield to the back-up before power went down in this sector. It's happened before...I...I make this trip a lot."

"I see." Derision flickered in Seiryo's teal eyes. "And they make it a habit, do they, to employ clumsy officers in the Regular division now? Or are they just so desperate for recruits they'll let anyone join up?"

"It was an accident, sir." Kiyone said hastily, and Seiryo looked amused.

"The spillage or the recruitment?" He asked dryly. Kiyone flushed red again, and Seiryo laughed.

"Well, in the absence of any proper technicians, you will have to do." He said with a casual flick of his hand. "You have clearance for this department, I trust?"

"Yes, sir." Kiyone looked surprised, a mixture of hope and apprehension in her heart at his words. "But like you said yourself, I...I'm not trained."

"You don't require training to lift and carry." Seiryo told her quietly. "Follow me. My ship is docked at the rear and I have some weaponry to disembark."

Kiyone eyed him in confusion for a moment, but the Elite Officer did not wait for a response. Instead he disappeared back the way he came and Kiyone hurried to keep up with him, knowing that this was as good a chance as any to find out what she could about Seiryo Tennan.

As they reached the docking bay, he paused, and she cast a glance over him, inwardly wondering what kind of weaponry she was helping to bring into headquarters and whether there was any foundation to Washu's suspicions. She had never spent so much time in close proximity to the man, and she found that she both respected and feared him in the short few minutes they had been acquainted.

"That one is my ship." Seiryo gestured to the largest and grandest of the vessels, shiny, clean and branded with the Tennan family insignia across it's bridge. For a moment Kiyone just stared at it, then she mustered her courage, offering her companion a smile.

"I've never seen a vessel quite like that." She admitted. "What does the logo mean?"

"It's my family's crest." Seiryo said quietly. "Some of us have greater ties in the universe than those of justice, Kiyone Makibi. My family are one of the most influential and well-placed families on Jurai. My ship befits a man of my rank."

"It's beautiful." Kiyone admitted, resisting the urge to run her fingers along the sleek silver gantry as they began to board. With a rueful smile, she remembered the battered, well-worn hull of Yagami, and realised that she was still a long way from the dizzy heights she had aspired to as a young, ambitious Police Academy student. "What did you want my help with, sir?"

"On my way back to Headquarters, I picked up a comission of weapons for the division." Seiryo said carelessly, pushing back the door of the drive room and ushering her inside. "It's tiresome that I should have to bring them inside myself, but I suppose if there is an emergency, it can't be helped. There are two cases...you take that one, and I will bring this other one. They're to go to my office. Do you know where that is?"

"No, sir." Kiyone said truthfully. Seiryo tut-tutted his impatience, shaking his head.

"Then follow me." he said curtly. "And keep up. I don't want you wandering around the corridors. These are powerful weapons - fire-blasters and other high level instruments. You are not licenced to carry such things, and it would be remiss of me to allow you access to them."

Kiyone's heart lurched at the mention of fire-blasters, but she said nothing, merely doing as she was bidden and following him carefully back down the ramp and through the tangle of corridors to the office which she had so desperately been seeking. It was at the furthest end of the annexe, with the agent's name marked on the door in gilted lettering, and as he released the security lock, Kiyone saw with startling clarity that the office was more than an office - it was almost a home from home. What she had expected to be a small, neatly marked out section of the complex was an expansive, sprawling set of rooms, beginning with a work-station but spreading beyond to what she presumed must be living quarters. Again, her mind flitted to the cramped living conditions aboard Yagami and she sighed.

Seiryo seemed to guess her thoughts, because he offered her a sardonic smile, depositing his burden in one corner and indicating for her to follow suit.

"You do know that nothing here is ever given without first being earned." He said quietly. "Compared to my accomodation on Jurai, this place is nothing. But in this squalid space station, it's everything. I did not gain my reputation in space by spilling tea on circuits and prevaricating about my training, Detective. Take a lesson from me and remember that. One day you may thank me for it."

Kiyone gazed up at him in surprise, and he laughed.

"If you have the ambition to follow it through." He added.

Kiyone glanced around the room, her gaze lingering for a moment on the sealed weaponry. There was no warehouse name on the boxes, and no Galaxy Police logo, but in the centre of one side was a curious brand, unlike anything she had seen before. She glanced up, scanning the room briefly for anything else that might suggest Seiryo Tennan was acting outside his authority, but nothing seemed out of place. It was just another busy work station of another busy agent, dedicated to the pursuit of justice in space.

"You are dismissed, Detective Makibi." Seiryo's voice cut through her musings and she started, looking discomfitted as she raised her hand in her salute.

"Yes, sir. Sorry, sir. I have just...never been so deep into the annexe before." She said quickly. Then, before he could question her further, she turned on her heel, fleeing the room completely and hurrying back through the maze of corridors to the control centre. As she entered, the technicians were just returning to their posts and one of them hailed her with a wave.

"Still here, Kiyone-san?" He asked playfully. "Taking cover in case Detective Mihoshi strikes again?"

"No...no." Kiyone shook her head. "Agent Tennan asked me to run an errand for him...I didn't think I could really refuse."

"Seiryo Tennan?" The man looked surprised. "Is he back, then?"

"Just arrived." Kiyone agreed. "He brought a consignment back with him and asked me to help him unload it. He seemed very busy, and...I was curious to see how the other half lived."

She looked abashed.

"Shameful, isn't it? But I've never seen inside the quarters of an Elite before."

"Live the life of luxury, some of them." The woman who had complained earlier rolled her eyes, sinking back down into her seat. "He's the worst of them. But then, he's also the best agent in the division, or so they say. Well, you only have to look at the statistics. His success rate speaks for himself. I guess he's earnt his perks, whatever they are."

"What else do you expect of a Juraian nobleman?" The man laughed. "My father was stationed there once - according to him, the upper class still settle disputes by the duel. I figure Tennan-san has been fighting since he first climbed out of his crib. Serves us well, though. He might be a touch arrogant, but he always gets the results."

"It must be wonderful, working on so many high profile cases." Kiyone sighed, a pensive look entering her blue eyes.

"You should apply for Elite training, Kiyone." The woman suggested. "You know they'd take you."

"I know." Kiyone pursed her lips, then shook her head. "But I'm needed where I am, and I don't think it would work out. Just another pipe dream."

She smiled.

"And I shouldn't be loitering here. I need to get back to my own caseload. Believe it or not, we regular Detectives do occasionally solve crimes too!"

As she made her way back towards the docking station where she had parked Yagami, she ran over in her mind her encounter with Seiryo Tennan.

"Very efficient, very cold, very much in control of what he's doing. Poker faced, almost." She mused. "But something else in his eyes - ambition? Power? I don't know what. A glint - something that tells me he shouldn't be crossed. No wonder he brings in so many criminals and solves so many cases. His reputation is as fearsome as he is, on first impressions. But is he the kind of man who'd make a random raid on planet Earth? I'm not sure. He seemed cool, relaxed and quite at home...not at all flustered or guilty, as if he'd done something that he shouldn't have done. But then, when you're a man like Seiryo Tennan, with the reputation and the power he has here, would you be worried? I guess not. I don't know. It's not much to go on...and I can't really go back to his quarters when I know he's likely to be there. I don't know how I'm going to give Washu any useful information at this rate. An Elite is likely to have been trained in subterfuge in ways I can't even begin to touch on. If anyone can cover his tracks, it's Seiryo Tennan...and I can't even tell if there are tracks that _need_ to be covered. Right now I'm not even sure if the man I just spoke to is even who he claims to be!"

She frowned, keying her code into the docking bay door and stepping out onto the cold platform as she glanced up at Yagami's patched hull. She sighed, shaking her head.

"Oh well. At least I have a ship." She reasoned. "Mihoshi's Yukinoyjo is scrap metal on a distant planet and nobody's said a word about replacing it since then. I shouldn't complain, really. I have a lot more influence here now than I ever did before I went to the Earth."

As she approached the hulking red craft, she raised her hand and a hazy red transport beam shot down onto the walkway in front of her. With a frown, she stepped into it, allowing herself to be taken up into the craft's drive room.

"Kiyone!" Mihoshi cast her a warm smile. "You took forever! Did you stop for a snack on the way?"

"No...no. I had an errand to run for the commander and then another to run for one of the other officers." Kiyone shook her head, slipping into her pilot seat and glancing down at the communicator. Washu's microchip was embedded deep in the control panel, out of sight, but just knowing it was there made her uneasy. After all, she told herself grimly, she had no way of knowing whether she was operating it correctly, and she could get into a lot of trouble if anyone discovered her craft had been bugged with her knowledge.

"Oh well." Mihoshi shrugged, stifling a yawn. "You're here now. And we can leave. I already set coordinates for sector three-eighteen. Or was it eight-thirteen? I don't remember...maybe it was eight-eighteen?"

"It was three-thirty-eight." Kiyone snapped, reaching across to type the coordinates into Yagami's electronic keypad. "Look, Mihoshi, you're obviously half asleep. How about you take a nap in the back and I'll wake you when we get there? I know what you're like when you're in this frame of mine. You're no use to me up here."

"Maybe I am a little sleepy." Mihoshi looked sheepish. "All right, Kiyone. Maybe you're right. I could do with a nap."

She got to her feet, stretching and stifling another yawn. "Give me a c...call when we reach the action, huh?"

"I promise." Kiyone nodded her head. "Sweet dreams, Mihoshi. Don't sleep too deeply, all right? I don't want to have to sound the fire claxon to get you to wake up again."

"All right." Mihoshi grinned. "I'll try. Good night, Kiyone. Safe flying."

With that, she was gone into the Yagami's living quarters, and, as the door slid shut behind her, Kiyone let out her breath in a rush.

"Well, I guess now is as good a time as any." She muttered, moving her fingers towards the communication device. For a moment she hesitated, then determination touched her heart and she pressed the button down firmly.

"Washu?" She said softly. "It's Kiyone."

-------

"And that's where we stand."

Tenchi ran agitated fingers through his dark hair, sinking down into a vacant seat as he did so. "Osaka is a hotbed of paranoia right at the moment, and they seem to have gleaned Ryoko's identity from somewhere. That being the case, we really don't know where we're safe to be at the moment - but something is going on, Washu, and I'd like to know what."

"So would I." Ryoko put in from the doorway, rubbing a towel vigorously through her wild hair. "I didn't much like being manhandled across the city, and that guy really seemed to know a lot about me."

"Well, you both sure seem to have done a good job of making yourselves conspicuous." Washu observed dryly. "Congratulations."

"Washu, it's not funny." Tenchi frowned. "There's no telling whether the people who tracked Ryoko down might track her to here as well. And these aren't the Galaxy Police. I'm not sure from what she told me that they're even normal Earth law enforcement. They seemed to be some...military body, at least that's what if sounded like to me. People who meant business."

"Earthlings sure scare easily." Ryoko added, sighing heavily as she dropped onto the sofa beside her beau and tossing the towel casually over the coffee table. "I'm still sure that Yume had something to do with it. She already told us her father was a cop. It isn't that much of a stretch."

"Yume wouldn't have told us that if she was going to use it against us." Tenchi objected, shaking his head. "It doesn't make any sense."

"Unless she told it us to lull us into a false sense of security." Ryoko pointed out. "Which would mean you'd think exactly what you just said. That she'd be too obvious. Double bluff."

"Ryoko, you're being paranoid."

"No, I'm being annoyed." Ryoko shook her head. "You weren't the one who got handcuffed today. I didn't expect that to happen to me on this planet. Especially since I wasn't the one causing all the trouble in downtown Osaka the other night!"

"Will you both shut up for just a moment?" Washu held up her hands, a frown crossing her face. "There are some gaps in this that I'm not quite following. Who or what is Yume? That's a name I haven't heard before."

"Some Earth girl Tenchi pulled from the fire." Ryoko shrugged. "If you ask me, it might've been better if he hadn't bothered."

"Ryoko, that's not fair." Tenchi protested. "You don't know that Yume did anything, and nobody deserved to die in that blaze. Isn't that why you intervened in the first place? To make sure people didn't get hurt?"

"No, I intervened to make sure _you_ didn't get hurt." Ryoko shook her head. "Very different thing. The others just happened to be there, and I figured I might as well make it a job lot."

"Well, either way, she did defend you to the mob after the event." Tenchi pointed out. "And she did warn us about what people had been saying. I don't think you can suspect her of complicity in your abduction. If her father is a local city cop, well, that doesn't fit what you told me about the men who took you into custody."

"I don't know." Ryoko frowned. "There was something about one of them that got me. But I don't know what."

"Washu?" Tenchi glanced at the scientist for help. Washu drummed her fingers absently on the arm of her seat, contemplating.

"Well, since I haven't met the girl, it's difficult to know if she's friend or foe right at the moment." She said off-handedly. "Ryoko, these people who took you. What exactly did they say to you? And ask you?"

"They knew my name - my full name - and that I wasn't from this planet." Ryoko said slowly. "They asked me who sent me and why I was here. Oh, and they told me they could kill me on the spot if I didn't answer, because I was a potential threat. I guess laws against random murders don't apply to visitors from the stars."

There was a bitter note in her tones and despite his frustration, Tenchi reached over to squeeze her hand.

"They were outta line." He said quietly. "But they probably didn't realise how powerful you can be if you put your mind to it. We both know that there's probably nothing on Earth that could keep you confined for long. There just isn't the technology."

"That doesn't make the process any more pleasant for me." Ryoko said with a sigh. "Besides, it meant using my powers again in front of a witness. It was that or remain there indefinitely, and I wanted to warn you before they grabbed you too. But it means yet another person can report strange behaviour, and this time to a superior officer. I didn't need to make a statement. By leaving that room the way I did I confirmed all of their suspicions about me."

"Where is Grandfather? And Father?" Tenchi asked. "If they know Ryoko isn't from the Earth, they could easily trace Grandfather and I should warn him."

"Your Grandfather is a shrewd man." Washu said quietly. "He and I spoke this morning, in some depth, about what had happened in Osaka. Your father is going straight from his work in Kurashiki to his sister's house in the north. Ostensibly he's going to visit your cousin Taro, but really it's to get him out of the way. Katsuhito-dono is at the shrine, where he intends to remain for the forseeable future. He says he won't leave...he's an old man, but not without defences. I don't know whether taking any kind of precautions here is necessary as yet...but if it is, he and I both felt that Noboyuke-san would be safer away from here."

"I agree." Relief flooded Tenchi's heart. "I always forget that Grandfather can fight his own battles. But I'm glad Father is safe, at the very least. Whatever is going on may not spread beyond Osaka, or even beyond Okayama. And with any luck, we'll have worked out what it is before then."

"Well, I'm doing my best to speed that along." Washu admitted. "I've also spoken to Kiyone in the last few days."

"Kiyone?" Ryoko's eyes widened in surprise. "How did you manage that?"

"Ryo Ohki contacted Yagami on my behalf." Washu glanced down at the cabbit that sat beside her on the chair cushion, studiously and thoroughly cleaning her thick fur as she did so. "I thought that it was important to find out what was going on with the Galaxy Police, if anything. Ryoko-chan, I know that Seiryo Tennan is a real officer - a member of the Galaxy Police's Elite division. But Kiyone doesn't believe that it was him who came to the Earth the other night. She reminded me of the shape-shifter who invaded my laboratory, and so I've asked her to find out what she can at Galaxy Police Headquarters. It's very possible that this is bigger than we imagine, and that the real Seiryo Tennan is not involved. His father was murdered recently. It's possible that Seiryo himself met some grisly fate at the same time."

"So we're sure this wasn't a bonafide Galaxy Police raid?" Ryoko asked hesitantly. Washu nodded.

"Pretty sure." She agreed. "Kiyone hasn't found any evidence of it, anyway. Actually, she's not been able to find very much at all, so far. All she was able to tell me was that Agent Tennan - or possibly, someone pretending to be Seiryo Tennan - was at Headquarters and so was his ship. I've checked the data she sent me about the craft and have confirmed that it is genuinely Seiryo's ship - the Unko - but that doesn't necessarily mean the real Seiryo Tennan was on the Earth the other night. If, as I said, he disappeared at the same time his father was killed, it seems wholly possible that the ship was stolen. Whoever this shape-shifter Clay has employed is, he or she is good at what they do. It takes a lot of genetic accuracy to fool my computer systems."

"Who is this Clay person you keep mentioning?" Tenchi asked. "Should we be worried about him? Is he dangerous?"

"He's mad." Washu said bluntly. "And a plagiarist to boot."

"You're mad too." Ryoko shrugged her shoulders. "What makes his madness different from yours?"

Washu frowned.

"Many, many years ago we were colleagues at the Science Academy, but he cut corners and tried to pass off the work of other colleagues and students as his own." She said softly. "He worked in my department, and not long before I was exiled here, I discovered what he had been doing. Not surprisingly, he was very much in favour of my sentence. It seems that he spent some time afterwards going through those of my files he had clearance to access, and stealing bits and pieces of my work to patent under his own name. Eventually, he was caught - but before the Academy could act, he disappeared. Noone knows where he is now...but I know he's still alive, because I know that it was his insignia I saw in the background on my security film."

"Sounds like a nice guy." Tenchi looked thoughtful. "But is he dangerous? I mean, you were imprisoned for seven hundred Earth years, Washu-chan. He must be quite old by now."

"He should be dead, but something has perpetuated him." Washu agreed. "Although seven hundred years is not so very long when counted in Earth years, Tenchi."

"True." Tenchi admitted. "I'm still trying to get my head around the different year lengths that exist across the universe, and the impact it has on different people's life-spans. I don't even fully understand what effect the Jurai Power has had on my own, not yet - it's all hard to absorb."

"You're probably better off not trying." Washu looked amused. "About two millenia ago, various scientific bodies from across the universe met up and discussed the idea of standardising time, but they couldn't reach any kind of agreement. So different space zones act on different timespans. There are planets with a shorter year than the Earth, because they rotate on a shorter time axis. And there are ones like Jurai which operate on a much longer one. Talking about years has become relative depending on where you are...some scientists spend their whole careers trying to make sense of it, but few manage to do so."

"So does Clay come from one of these worlds with a short axis? Or what?" Ryoko's brow furrowed as she digested this. "He's obviously older than me, if you worked with him."

"He is." Washu nodded. "I'd say he's probably somewhere around his first milennium - perhaps a few hundred years over it. At least, talking in Earth time. I don't remember where he's from and it's really not important. What is is that he's working on something which obviously ties in the files stolen from my lab and these atmospheric disturbances. The same disturbances occured over Osaka when Tennan-san attacked, so they're connected to this as well. And they were there when Clay escaped from the Academy, which indicates that he's probably not calling the shots on whatever this is on his own."

"Meaning...?"

"Meaning something or someone else is controlling him, it and everything else." Washu said grimly. "But unfortunately, right at the moment, I haven't figured out what."

"Hey...if this Clay guy is over a thousand years old, Washu-chan, how old does that make _you_?" Tenchi's eyes narrowed. "You sure don't look old...but you must be at least as old as he is, to have been his colleague. Older, even, if he worked under you at the Academy. How many Earth years have you been around? Really?"

Washu stared at him for a moment, then she laughed.

"You know, it's not polite to ask a woman how old she is." She chided gently. "Older than that, that's all you need to know. Really, Tenchi, you need to be careful. Ryoko's bad manners are starting to rub off on you."

"Hey!" Ryoko glared at her mother, folding her arms across her chest. "If you don't like my manners, you should have bothered to raise me yourself! And while we're on the subject of your maternal inadequacies, how dare you ask favours of my spaceship and not tell me about it? I might have wanted to speak to Kiyone as well, you know - and you weren't even in Osaka. How can you give her reliable information without seeing it for yourself?"

At the sound of her name, Ryo Ohki raised her head, letting out a soft mew as she fixed her mistress with a guilty look. Washu smiled, rubbing the cabbit affectionately beneath her chin.

"Ryo Ohki and I are friends. She helped me out, because I asked her to." She said simply. "I didn't realise I had to apply for permission. I thought Ryo Ohki was a sentient being in her own right."

"And why did you keep this from me?" Ryoko's brow furrowed, reaching over to scoop the cabbit up out of Washu's reach, and meeting her gaze head on. "Ryo Ohki, I thought we didn't have secrets. Are you mad because I didn't take you to Osaka? Because you know why I didn't, and believe me, you were better off here. It's not like I cut off contact."

Ryo Ohki mewed in protest, wriggling out of Ryoko's grip and leaping up onto her mistress's shoulder, arching and rubbing herself against the pirate's neck as she made herself comfortable. Ryoko pursed her lips.

"All very well for you to say now, but I don't like things going on behind my back." She said softly. "And you don't know that Tenchi and I couldn't have helped Kiyone with her factfinding. You should have told me, Ryo Ohki. Even if you did think I'd worry."

"It's my fault that she didn't tell you." Washu spread her hands. "I asked her not to."

"And what right do _you _have to be telling my spaceship what to do?" Ryoko glared at the scientist angrily.

"I'm your mother, Ryoko-chan."

"That doesn't make any difference!" Ryoko snapped. "You leave Ryo Ohki alone and stop taking advantage of her good heart. Of course she wanted to help you - she always wants to help. But you don't get her involved in this whole mess without my say-so, do you understand? I didn't take her to the city because I didn't want people's attention to be drawn to her. Now I find that you've been using her to send covert signals - which God knows who might have picked up, if this guy Clay is anything like the kind of technical wizard you are! You might have led them right to us!"

Washu eyed her daughter thoughtfully for a moment, and Tenchi glanced apprehensively between mother and daughter, unsure as to whether or not he should intervene.

"Ryo Ohki is in no danger. She knows how to keep herself undetected." Washu said quietly, breaking the silence that threatened to become unbearable. "And she has no reason to love Dr Clay, any more than I do. She was happy to help, once she understood exactly what the situation was. You're taking your frustration out on me, and it's misdirected. We have bigger problems to deal with, and yelling at me about Ryo Ohki isn't going to solve any of them."

She stood to leave, but Ryoko was on her feet in a minute, grabbing her mother tightly around the wrist.

"Hold it." She said sharply. "Ryo Ohki has no cause to love Clay? What does Ryo Ohki know of this guy? She's just a baby!"

"_This _Ryo Ohki, maybe." Washu inclined her head slightly. "But Ryo Ohki the ship is a lot older. As old as you are, Ryoko-chan, or very nearly. You know that. You bonded with her when you were both just children...or had you forgotten?"

"I never told you that." Ryoko's eyes narrowed suspiciously. Washu shook her head.

"You didn't have to. It's all in Ryo-Ohki's memory banks." She said carelessly. "She's really very fond of you, all things considered. Sometimes I really can't think why, but there it is."

"And since when did you go hacking into Ryo Ohki's memory banks?" Ryoko raised an eyebrow. "Don't tell me that you believe she's tied up in this business somehow?"

"No, not directly." Washu shook her head. She looked pained, sitting back down in her seat with an air of reluctance. "All right, I can see that I'll have to explain a little bit more. But let go of me, Ryoko. You're cutting off my circulation, and my fingers are starting to go numb."

Ryoko glowered at her mutinously, but obediently released her grip, dropping back into her own seat as she did so. Ryo Ohki mewed, jumping down onto the pirate's lap and raising big golden eyes to her mistress's. Ryoko frowned, reaching down to stroke the cabbit's soft chocolate fur.

"You don't think I should be mad at her either." She murmured. "But I don't understand...you let her read your memories? But why, Ryo Ohki? I thought only _I_ could do that?"

"The last thing I worked upon before they exiled me from the Academy was the combination of organic and mechanical compounds to produce specific, designated outcomes." Washu said softly, and Tenchi saw a hint of nostalgia flit across her green eyes as she recounted memories from long ago. "After the failure of the Phoenix ship to solve the problem of frequent space damage, it became clear that a completely mechanical ship would never be able to perform all the operations that were needed. The craft needed to be sentient - it had to understand things for itself and essentially, have a brain that was seperate from its electronic control system. We worked for a long time, my team and I, combining the DNA of various different species from all across the universe...hunting for the right combination of genes to mesh with the mechanical componants we had already designed. Ryo Ohki - or rather, Ryo Ohki's kind - were the end result."

"You mean that _you_ built Ryo Ohki?" Tenchi stared, glancing from cabbit to scientist in disbelief. "But Washu, Ryoko said she found them in cages, starved to death. You didn't...?"

"Of course not." Washu shook her head impatiently. "Ryo Ohki was born in the lab, along with all the others. But after my exile, Clay took over the project, along with many others. He took and manipulated my organic technology to his own ends - the last recorded file he patented at the Academy incorporates a lot of my original ideas. I suspect that he dumped the cabbits that were still in the laboratory in order to expand his own project. "Zero", or whatever it was he called it. Either way, I was imprisoned on the Earth when Ryoko found Ryo Ohki. I would never have left them to die."

"Ryo Ohki." Ryoko stared at the cabbit for a moment, then up at her mother. "How many more secrets have you kept from me, Washu?"

"As many as you've probably kept from me." Washu looked amused. "I suppose that makes Ryo Ohki your sister, little Ryoko. You're not an only child after all. Isn't it nice?"

Ryo Ohki batted at Ryoko's finger with her paw, mewing, and Ryoko sighed, shaking her head.

"So if Ryo Ohki was one of your science projects too, does that mean you can read her mind the way I can?" She asked. Washu shook her head.

"No. They were designed to bond with one captain and noone else." She said. "Ryo Ohki chose you, and your own telepathic inclinations have made your bond stronger over the years. I can access data from Ryo Ohki's memory with her permission, but I have to do so manually."

She reached across, touching the gem on Ryo Ohki's brow, and Tenchi watched in fascination as the small pinkish gem flickered with a strange light.

"Like this." She added. "Unfortunately, the process is two-way. I didn't have the chance to properly secure the connection before I was condemned, so she picks up certain thoughts and memories from me at the same time. I thought it best, therefore, to tell her everything I just told you when I asked her for her help. Most ships have their creators' information sealed away from them, for security and patenting reasons. But Ryo Ohki knows better now. She knows that I'm her mother, just as much as I am yours, Ryoko."

Ryo Ohki squealed, as if the contact tickled her, and despite himself, Tenchi laughed.

"Well, I guess that does mean you and she really are family, Ryoko." He observed. "Sisters, like Washu said."

"Just so long as you can't access my thoughts by tapping into hers." Ryoko eyed her mother suspiciously. "There's a lot that goes on in my head that is none of your business."

"I think the feeling is mutual, my dear." Washu assured her. "But now we've settled the matter of Ryo Ohki's involvement, I'll tell you the little that Kiyone has managed to uncover. Unfortunately, it isn't very much, and she's understandably concerned about spying on someone who has a lot of power and influence. She did tell me that something Tennan-san brought to Headquarters was marked with a logo she didn't recognise - one which sounds disturbingly like Dr Clay's insignia. But that doesn't tell us anything we don't already know. Clay is involved, and it doesn't prove whether or not the man calling himself Seiryo Tennan is really Seiryo Tennan."

"Does that matter? We don't know who the guy is either way." Ryoko pointed out, clutching Ryo Ohki almost protectively as she ruminated over this. "Even if he is a space cop, he still isn't someone I'd have been able to pick out of a line up before he attacked the Earth. Why does it matter so much whether he's the real deal?"

"The Tennan family are Juraian nobility, with a lot of power and influence in the Holy Council." Washu said simply. "That being the case, I don't think we can completely discount them."

"Could we speak to Jurai, then?" Tenchi suggested. Washu shrugged.

"Maybe, but I'd rather not just yet. Not till we know more." She admitted. "The Tennan family has led exploratory and invasion parties in the past, and I'd rather know that this wasn't another one of those before we try that line of enquiry. He might be your great grandfather, Tenchi, but I do not trust Azusa. Nor do I trust Prince Haru. I'd rather know everything that I can before I bring them in - and be sure that they're not behind it."


	8. Chapter 8

**Chapter 8**

"And that's everything that she told you?"

Ayeka pursed her lips, a look of distress on her face as she glanced at her small sister. Sasami was pale and uncharacteristically sombre, her hair pulled neatly back beneath the dark fabric that all the royal house were still compelled to wear out of respect for their dead Councillor, and somehow the contrast with the black cloth made the younger princess's complexion seem even more ashen. She sighed, shaking her head slowly.

"I wish you hadn't gone there, Sasami-chan." She added heavily. "Father will be angry. You know how he feels about all of this."

"I know." Sasami twisted her fingers together, raising her gaze to her sister's in earnest. "But I had to, Ayeka. I can't explain why...I just had to."

"There's a lot of things you don't seem able to explain to me any more, and I feel like I'm losing you." Ayeka said sadly. "You spend more time with spirits and voices than you do with the real world lately - or that's how it seems to me. It worries me. It worries all of us. Are you sure that this is what Tsunami wants you to do? And you're not just getting confused by everything that's happened?"

"Ayeka!" An obstinate look entered Sasami's gaze and she put her hands on her hips. "I thought you at least believed in me!"

Ayeka was silent for a moment, mulling this over. Then she sighed, nodding her head.

"It's because I believe you that I'm so worried." She admitted at length. "I know you're telling me the truth...but the longer it goes on, the more difficult it is to accept that my sister is changing so much as you are. I love you, Sasami, and I always will. It just...worries me."

"Me too, sometimes." Sasami dropped her gaze. "But this is how it is and I can't change it. I asked Tsunami to un-connect us but she said it isn't possible - that I was always going to be her even before I knew it, so I've just got to live with it."

She reached out to grab Ayeka's hand, and the Crown Princess stared at her companion in surprise as a faint flicker of energy passed between them.

"She did promise me I wouldn't have to become Tsunami until I was ready, though." She said earnestly. "And I'm not, so you don't have to worry. Really. And we are still sisters, Ayeka. Only now you're big sister to a goddess as well as a princess. Pretty neat, huh?"

She managed a laugh, but it lacked her usual vivacity, and Ayeka sighed.

"All right." She said at length. "I suppose if Tsunami asked you to speak to Uncle then we must speak to Uncle and see what he says. I'm not sure whether he'll be keen on the idea, though. He seems very wary about sending anyone to the Earth - something about respecting Tenchi and Yosho-dono's choices and not interfering in their lives there. The Earth is a sceptical planet still - Juraian ships going there might cause more harm than good."

"Tsunami said Tokimi was going to try and take Tenchi and that he was in danger and needed our help." Sasami said stolidly. "You don't have to come with me, Ayeka, but I have to go either way. She won't leave me alone until I do, anyway. I know her better than that by now. If I don't get the message one way, she'll find another way to pass it on."

"Well, it might carry more weight if it comes from us both." Ayeka decided. "No, I will come with you, Sasami-chan. If you really think Tenchi is in danger..."

"More than just Tenchi." Sasami agreed. "Although I don't...completely understand everything Tsunami said. Only that this Tokimi woman means Tsunami harm in some way as well, and that's why she's after Tenchi in the first place. Which means it's a Juraian problem and we have to help."

"Why Tenchi and not you?" Ayeka looked surprised. "That doesn't make any sense."

"Tsunami didn't tell me that." Sasami spread her hands. "Only that we were both in danger so long as Tokimi sought Tsunami and her magic."

"I wish you'd tell Tsunami to be a bit more helpful in her transmissions." Ayeka muttered, as they entered the royal palace and made their way along the winding corridors to the private quarters of Jurai's Emperor. "I'm sure we'd save a lot of time if she just told us everything from start to finish instead of leaving things undone like this."

"I think she has a sense of mischief." Sasami admitted. "She likes to tease me as well as tell me all these things...like she's been unable to talk to anyone for so long that she has to find someone to play with."

"The Goddess of Jurai has a sense of mischief?" Ayeka's eyebrows shot up into her fringe at this. "Then we're all in trouble, if she's playing with our lives as much as she's teasing you."

"I don't know." Sasami looked thoughtful. "But if she is me, Ayeka, and if I am her...surely she must have been like me, when she was alive? She said she knew me better than I knew myself, and that I'd always been destined to be this way. Doesn't that mean that, well, we'd have those things in common?"

Ayeka eyed her sister long and hard for a moment. Then she shook her head, gripping the girl more tightly by the hand and pulling her along towards the inner sanctum of Azusa's private rooms.

"If the future of this planet relies on a goddess who plays hide and seek with lost souls on spaceships, and who ruins more dresses than anyone else I know by running riot around the palace grounds, Sasami, we're all doomed." She said acerbically. "And now we're here. I hope Uncle hasn't got any meetings this morning. I'd rather as few people heard this as possible."

"Ayeka." Sasami pouted, and Ayeka grimaced back at her.

"If you really are Tsunami, the both of you need to grow up." She said admonishingly.

"I will. I'm just a kid still, remember?" Sasami protested. "At least, I'm trying to be. All of this makes it difficult, and wearing all of this black and gloomy stuff doesn't help."

"Mourning for Seiji Tennan." Ayeka touched the dark fabric of her own gown with a sigh, shaking her head. "I have to admit I agree with you. Everyone robed in dull shades while his son runs back to the Galaxy Police and his mother and sister are never seen out of their home. I know Kaede-dono is sick, Sasami-chan, but Azaka told me that Suki-kyou's ship left the planet Jurai late last night, and hasn't been seen returning since. We're all in mourning for her father. The Tennan family, on the other hand, don't seem to be."

"Maybe she's just sad and wants to be alone." Sasami shrugged. "She seems sad, when I've seen her."

"She did tell me she wanted some time to herself, I admit." Ayeka acknowledged. "And yes, Sasami, she does seem sad. But the whole business is so very Tennan it's untrue."

She paused to acknowledge the salute of the guard on duty, who made his obeissance to both princesses and then glanced at Ayeka enquiringly.

"Is the Emperor within?" Ayeka asked softly. "My sister wishes an audience with him, if he is not otherwise engaged."

"Azusa-heika is within, and there is noone with him." The guard responded respectfully. "I will tell him you are here, Ayeka-hime."

With that he disappeared into the hallway behind him, emerging in a few moments to say that Azusa would see them in his study at once. Ayeka glanced at Sasami, seeing the relief flickering in her crimson eyes, and she tried her best to quell the misgivings in her own heart.

"Sometimes she's so young and carefree. Other times she has the world on her shoulders." She mused to herself as she guided the younger girl into Azusa's official private study. "Are you Sasami or Tsunami, my sister? Sometimes even _I'm_ not sure of the answer."

"Well? And what brings my nieces here this morning?"

Azusa greeted the girls with a warm smile, indicating for them both to be seated as the guard once more withdrew, leaving the royal trio alone. "What is this visit in aid of? I don't usually entertain you both in my study so early in the day."

"It's me who really wanted to see you, Uncle." Sasami glanced at Ayeka, then spoke up, twisting her hands together in her lap as she did so. "And Ayeka promised to come too, because she thought you might listen to me more if we both came. You see, I've been speaking to Tsunami, and..."

"Tsunami?" Azusa looked startled. "But I thought that whole business was behind us! With the destruction of Kagato's spirit, Tsunami sleeps again. Doesn't she?"

"It would seem not, Uncle." Ayeka said softly. "Sasami has had at least one disturbed night in the past week, thanks to Tsunami's interference."

"I see." Azusa's expression became grave. "And what does our Goddess tell you this time, Sasami-chan?"

"That Tenchi is in trouble." Sasami raised earnest eyes to his shadowed ones, biting her lip as she did so. "And so might Jurai be, too. There's some woman called Tokimi and she wants to hurt Tenchi and Tsunami and maybe even Jurai. It all has something to do with some really long dead colony Jurai had years and years ago and...well, I don't really understand all of it but this Tokimi person is part of this colony world and she really hates Jurai and Tsunami. So she wants to destroy Tenchi because she knows he's connected to her somehow. And...and that's all."

Azusa rubbed his beard thoughtfully, and for a moment there was silence in the room. Then, after much consideration, the Emperor spoke.

"And what does Tsunami suggest we do about it?" He asked softly. Sasami spread her hands.

"Send people to the Earth to help him." She said simply. "Because people there might get hurt too, and...Uncle, this Tokimi woman killed everyone on her planet. I think she's crazy. Tsunami says she did it just by being angry with the people there, and she made volcanoes erupt and trees come down and winds howl across the land. It was so awful...she made me see it all. And then the whole planet was dark and dead and empty...just like it was a ghost ship."

"And you think this...what did you call her? Tokimi? Intends to do the same thing to Jurai?"

"I don't know." Sasami admitted. "Tsunami just asked me to tell you that Tenchi was in danger and so might Jurai be. And that Jurai needed to get involved in this before it was too late."

"Ayeka, what are your thoughts on this?" Azusa turned his dark eyes on his elder niece, who started at the attention, then shrugged.

"I believe Sasami tells the truth, because she always does." She said sadly. Azusa frowned.

"Yes, I know she tells the truth." He agreed. "But what to do about it - there is my dilemma. Sasami-chan, I need more information. Tsunami...she must have told you something more. What kind of danger Tenchi faces. What risk there is to our people. What might happen if we fail to intervene. You know I have misgivings about interfering in the Earth's affairs. They are a backward, remote planet and not within Jurai's concern or jurisdiction. Whether I like the fact that my son and his descendants have chosen to settle there is not the point in question. As a father and a great grandfather, I would do anything in my power to keep them safe. But in the interests of my people...as an Emperor..."

He sighed, rubbing his temples.

"Unless you can tell me more about the nature of this threat, I'm not sure what to do." He admitted. "Has Tsunami met this Tokimi? Do we know how they have crossed horns in the past?"

"Tsunami said that Jurai colonised Tokimi's planet, thousands of years ago." Sasami said slowly. "I think it was a very, very long time ago, Uncle Azusa. She didn't tell me how long, but I got the impression it was in the Old Era. The book in my dream was in Old Language, anyway. And that was from around the same time."

"Book? What book?" Azusa looked stymied, and Sasami blushed.

"In my dream, Tsunami showed me Tokimi, and her father and...and someone else." She said haltingly, and Ayeka could read consternation in the younger girl's eyes as she faltered, changing her mind in mid-sentence. "They had a book and it was Juraian. That's all. She told me that settlers came from Jurai to Kihaku, anyway."

"Kihaku?" Azusa stared. "Sasami, child, that planet has been dead for many milennia! Long before my time or my father's or even ten Emperors before him! What possible connection could it have to modern day Jurai? The world is dead and noone from it could have survived this long. Kihaku's time axis is no longer than that of Jurai and nobody lives so long as that. Not even with a magic like the Jurai Power to sustain them. Are you sure in what Tsunami told you? Can you be mistaken?"

"I'm not mistaken." Sasami shook her head. "Uncle, Kihaku was the planet. And Tokimi is real...Tsunami told me so and she doesn't tell lies any more than I do."

"But Sasami, the time span...it's impossible." Azusa shook his head. "Even if Kihaku's colonisation had been at the end of the Old Era - which it was not, I hasten to add - it's impossible that anyone could have survived so long as to still be a threat to us today."

"Even if she's bonded to the planet like Tsunami is to Jurai, Uncle?" Ayeka questioned. Azusa hesitated, then nodded.

"Kihaku is a dead planet. Nobody can bond to something dead and decaying." He said softly. "Sasami-chan, I'm sorry. I don't understand Tsunami's message and I cannot act upon it."

"But Uncle!" Sasami was on her feet, and Ayeka reached over to calm her, taking her sister's slim hand in hers and squeezing it tightly.

"Maybe Tsunami will tell you more yet." She said gently. "But Uncle is right. It doesn't make sense for someone to be alive after so long...not when their world is dead."

"Tokimi isn't the only one." Sasami pulled her hand away, sending both Ayeka and Azusa a defiant look. "And I believe she is alive and that it is possible. Tsunami said it is, and I believe her!"

"We don't doubt Tsunami." Azusa began, but Sasami shook her head.

"Then you doubt me and I'm not wrong either." She snapped. "Uncle Azusa, something bad is coming to Jurai. Can't you feel it? Tsunami already has. And if Tokimi does want to hurt Tenchi, what about the people on the Earth? Jurai can defend themselves, but the Earth can't! Why can't we go there and help them? They might need us."

"You are still a child, Sasami-chan, and even if you are communicating with our Goddess, I won't tolerate such shows of temper in my study." Azusa said evenly. "I think you need to calm down and reconsider your behaviour. When you do so, I'm sure you'll see why it's unreasonable for me to send military forces across the universe to protect a planet that probably doesn't need our interference and would consider such an action a threat to their way of life in the extreme. Either way, Tenchi and Yosho can both defend themselves if need be. They are not helpless. And for the time being, that is my final word on the matter."

Sasami stared at him for a moment. Then, without another word, she turned on her heel, flouncing out of the study and banging the door shut behind her. Ayeka winced.

"I've never seen Sasami act that way before." She said softly. "I think this whole air of mourning is affecting even her, Uncle. Please don't stay mad with her. She is still young and well, all of this confuses and scares her too."

"I know." Azusa sighed, getting to his feet and moving to the window. "In truth, it nags at me also."

"Uncle?" Surprise flooded Ayeka's heart as she glanced at him. "Are you saying that you believe her more than you let her see?"

"I don't know." Azusa admitted. "Kihaku is a dead world. If you paid attention to your studies you may know that it was a colony once, a long time ago. But the timespan is restrictive and I don't see how anyone could survive the destruction that planet has undergone. Of course, Jurai had a hand in that- stripping mineral reserves and hollowing out much of the core in the process of making some of our leading families what they are today."

"And this Tokimi? What about her?"

"There was a Priestess of Kihaku called Tokimi." Azusa agreed. "It's written in the texts in the oldest part of the library - the chronicles that detail the colonisation of distant worlds in the early and middle Old Era. She's mentioned in many entries, attacking the settlers and their domes, interfering in their attempts to make a peaceful existance on Kihaku's land. The scribes called her a heathen and a heretic, believing in base spirits instead of the power and peace of Tsunami-kami-sama. But she was a powerful Priestess nonetheless."

"What happened to her?" A chill touched Ayeka's heart as she listened to her uncle's account. "Could she still be out there? I mean, if Sasami is right...? Or is this another Tokimi? Someone else bearing the same woman's name?"

"An avenging angel?" Azusa shrugged his shoulders. "A descendant of long dead Kihaku? Perhaps. That may explain it. To be truthful, Ayeka, I don't know what happened to Tokimi after her world died. She seems to have disappeared too. The planet still exists but it is devoid of life - a dead world. I would have thought that would have killed her, also."

"And if it didn't?" Ayeka whispered.

"Then maybe there is some grain of truth in what Sasami was saying." Azusa sighed heavily. "But even so, as Emperor of Jurai, Ayeka, I must think of Jurai's welfare before that of my great grandson or even my own son. I see no threat to Jurai at this time, and it would be foolish to engage military units or risk lives pursuing something that may not even be what it seems. So for now, we will let it lie. Sasami may have misunderstood what Tsunami told her, or it may have been just a dream and the child confused it with reality. Either way, there's nothing we can do yet. And right now, the Council and Seiryo Tennan's absence is a greater concern. Until he returns from the Galaxy Police, the Treasury is unattended and we have noone to make report."

"I'll take responsibility for that, Uncle. Takeru and I will see to it that the records are kept up to date." Ayeka rose, her expression sombre. "And I hope you're right about Tokimi and Sasami's predictions. Because I don't like to think of Tenchi in trouble, and I don't want anything to happen to Jurai."

Azusa turned, and in that moment he looked older than Ayeka had ever seen him. He smiled sadly, spreading his hands.

"Nor do I, Ayeka." He murmured. "Tsunami preserve me if I've made the wrong choice."

-------

Well, so she was here.

Suki glanced up at the forbidding entranceway, her heart in her throat as she registered the guards on duty, armed and standing stiffly to attention as they kept their eyes open for intruders. For a moment, she debating turning on her heel, re-boarding her spacehip and fleeing back across the universe, but she knew only too well that there was no solace back on Jurai, either. Setting her teeth, she pushed forward, approaching the main gate and casting a polite smile at the nearest sentry.

"I'm here to see Seiryo Tennan." She said softly. "Please, where might I be able to find him?"

"Agent Tennan's department is the highest level of security." The guard squinted at her, suspicion in his dark eyes. "Who are you?"

"Suki Tennan. Agent Tennan's sister." Suki fumbled in her purse, producing her Juraian identity card and her permit to travel in space. She held them out, and the guard took them, pulling a flat, disk-like device from the top pocket of his jacket and running them over the top. There was a bleep, and the disk flashed a green light.

"Lady Suki, my apologies." Suddenly the guard seemed to find his manners, bowing his head as he returned the documents to her. "You understand that we can never be too careful. I will accompany you to Agent Tennan's quarters. Please, step this way - through the genetic scanners, if you don't mind. It's just procedure...you understand."

"Yes...I understand." Suki gazed around her with big, nervous eyes, but obediently followed the uniformed man through the glowing blue haze that marked the entrance into the complex, letting out a tiny sigh of relief when she found she could pass through unmolested. The guard saw her expression, and smiled.

"First time at Headquarters, is it?" He asked quietly. Suki nodded.

"I've never been able to come visit him here before, and I wouldn't now...only I need to see him." She said sadly. "He is here, isn't he? I saw the Unko docked in the bay as I came round the back, but..."

"Beautiful ship, the Unko." The guard rubbed his beard contemplatively, guiding her through the convoluted passage-ways that, to the anxious girl seemed all to be alike. "And I expect his ship being in port means he's here also. Agent Tennan doesn't like to travel in foreign transport, Suki-kyou. He prefers to man his own craft, and no wonder."

"He's always been attached to it. He believes it brings him luck." Suki agreed softly. "But I don't know. It's just a spaceship, after all."

"Well, here we are, my Lady." The guard dipped his head once more, pausing outside a stark white-panel door and Suki could make out her brother's name in gilted lettering across the front. "If you need anything more, don't hesitate to call us. It isn't often we entertain Juraian nobility...and we wouldn't like your Emperor to think our manners were lacking."

He bowed again, then withdrew down the corridor, and Suki raised her fist, hesitating and then knocking resolutely on the door. At first there was no response, and Suki began to fear that her brother was not there. Then, with a soft hiss, the dividing panel slid back.

"Suki!" Seiryo stared at her, a mixture of dismay and disbelief flitting across his expression as he saw her. He grabbed her roughly by the arm, pulling her into the chamber and shutting the door firmly behind her. "What are you doing here? Have you any idea how much danger you could put yourself in, coming all the way across space like this? What if they'd thought you were a brigand or looter? And what if you'd been attacked on the journey? Suki-chan, what were you thinking?"

He led her into the small sitting area that branched off the main workroom, indicating for her to sit down as he poured her a mug of hot tea from the contraption that was tightly bolted to the furthest wall, and Suki took the proffered cup without demur, sipping the warm substance tentatively. It was bitter and strange to her refined taste buds, but it was warm and somehow, being there in the company of her brother again made her feel safer.

"Well?" Seiryo poured his own drink, sitting down opposite her and casting her a quizzical look. "Why _are_ you here? What was so urgent that you couldn't send a memo?"

Suki bit her lip.

"It's so hard." She whispered. "Seiryo, why _did_ you come back to the Galaxy Police? Ayeka-hime said you came to avenge Father's killer, but...but you and I both know that that's not true. Mother keeps asking if there's news from you, and...and I don't know if I can keep it all together any longer. Not on my own. Please, come home. I can't play Lady of the Manor when I'm not even eighteen!"

Seiryo was silent for a moment. Then, slowly he shook his head, setting his drink down on the steel table between them.

"I have to see this through." He said quietly. "You shouldn't have come here, Suki-chan. I mean it. I don't want you in any danger, and Mother will worry about you if she thinks you've taken off across space on your own. I know it all seems crazy at the moment, but I'm doing this with your - and our - best interests in mind. You do have faith in me, don't you?"

"Of course I do!" Suki exclaimed. "I'm just...I'm scared, Seiryo."

She sighed, gazing down at the flecks of leaf floating on the surface of her drink.

"And I have nobody I can talk to."

"No, you don't." Seiryo said frankly. "And that includes me. Suki, the more you talk the more people can hear. I want you to promise me never to raise that subject again...I mean it. Except in terms of what we agreed. I'm doing everything I can to keep you safe - believe me. But if you buckle and give everything away, there'll be nothing I can do. Just go home and wait. I'll be back with you as soon as my work here is concluded. I promise."

"But why are you here? I don't understand." Suki eyed her brother with earnest aqua eyes. "We both know it's not to avenge Father."

"But making the appearance of it is as important as actually doing it." Seiryo said with a shrug.

"It's all about appearances." Suki sighed, shaking her head. "I'm starting to think that those things don't matter so much as I thought they did, Seiryo-oniichan. If it takes you away from Mother and I when we need you the most, how can it be the best thing? The Tennan family are strong and they've got through tough things before. But I worry about you, and about what you might have to do in order to keep everything...together. Since you went away I've been scared for you."

"Well, don't be." Seiryo reached out to touch her hand. "I'm not as weak as Father believed me to be. I'm capable of much more than he ever gave me credit for. You're just insecure at the moment because it all seems so uncertain. But it won't be. I have a much better grasp of finance than he ever did, and I won't shame the Tennan name by cavorting with local harlots when I should be in Council session."

"Did you find the girl?" Suki asked anxiously. Seiryo nodded.

"Yes." he said flatly. "I found her. And you needn't worry on that score. She won't be talking to anyone."

Horror flooded Suki's gaze and she bit her lip.

"You didn't..._kill_ her?" She whispered. Seiryo looked impatient.

"No, I didn't." He responded. "I told you I wouldn't and you said you trusted me. We had words, that's all."

"Oh." Suki relaxed, sinking back against the seat and closing her eyes. "Well, that's good then. I'm sorry I came out here like this, Seiryo. I guess...I guess I just missed you. You've been away so many years and then you're gone again - I just wanted my big brother home again, like when I was a little girl. That's all. I find it hard to think of this as your world. It's so cold and...and harsh. And dangerous."

"No more dangerous than the political circles of Jurai, and certainly not colder, if the Imada family are involved." Seiryo said bitterly. "And besides, my stay here is temporary this time. With Father gone, the Tennan manor is missing it's Lord and, as you said yourself, you're far too young and too inexperienced to take up the mantle and the Council seat yourself. Mother is too frail, and that leaves it to me."

Suki eyed him studiously, taking in the tiredness in his teal eyes and the drawn look on his face. She frowned.

"You look weary, Seiryo-oniichan." She murmured. "Is something wrong?"

"Wrong? No." Seiryo shook his head. "In fact, quite the opposite. Everything is going extremely well."

"What everything?" Suki looked confused. "I know you can't talk about your work to me, but surely they won't let you go home until you produce a suspect in Father's murder? And you can't do that...or if you do..."

She faltered, shaking her head.

"I won't let you make someone innocent a scapegoat." She whispered.

Seiryo laughed, but there was a strangely hollow note to it.

"I will do whatever it takes to put my family back where it belongs." He said quietly, getting to his feet and pulling her to hers. "Listen to me, Suki. You are a Tennan. Just like me. We have generations of proud family history to uphold and pass on to our descendants. Neither one of us can falter now. Everything will be all right, so long as you go back to Jurai and act as normally as you can, in the circumstances. Wear your mourning drab. Pray for Father at that wretched Tree. Comfort mother and make sure she doesn't fret. And don't worry about me. I know how to act."

"Seiryo..."

"No, Suki." Seiryo pushed his finger to her lips. "I won't tell you any more than you need to know. Just be assured that I have allies and protection beyond anything that even the Emperor Azusa could muster. I'm quite safe, so long as I complete my mission successfully, and there have been scarce occasions in the past when I haven't done just that. So take your ship and go back home. If you want an escort, I'll ask for some of the junior officers to accompany you...but you must go. And we will see each other soon, when all will be well."

Suki sent her companion a troubled look.

"Something _is _wrong." She murmured. "You've never spoken like that before. What kind of protection? I don't understand. Talk to me, Seiryo-oniichan! What have you had to agree to, in return for my safety?"

"Nothing that need concern you." Seiryo touched her gently on the cheek, but his fingers were cold, and a brief jolt of energy seemed to skip from his skin to hers. She drew back, fear flickering in her eyes.

"What's _happened _to you?" She demanded. Seiryo stared.

"Nothing." He said simply. "And you should be making your way back. It's late and getting later still."

"No." Suki shook her head. "When you touched me...Seiryo, I felt it. Something like I'd never felt before. Some kind of...of magic. Dark magic."

She swallowed hard, trying to hold back her tears. "Is that what you had to do? Trust in witchcraft for my sake?"

"There's no such thing as witches or witchcraft, and there is nothing wrong with me." Seiryo shook his head, impatience in his expression. "Please, Suki. Don't ask questions I can't answer. If you felt something, it must have been atmospheric. They've been having circuitry trouble here on and off most of the day, thanks to one of the idiots in the regular division - more likely than not it's just a random electric shock."

"I don't know." Doubt touched Suki's heart. "Seiryo..."

"Shh." Seiryo shook his head. "No more on this topic. Go back to Jurai and I will join you as soon as I can. All right? And don't worry. I can look after myself."

Suki sent him a pained look, but before she could protest further, he had reached across to release the catch on the main door of his quarters. It slid back almost silently, and, not without misgivings, Suki found herself back out in the blue-lit hallways once more.

"Have a safe trip, my sister." Seiryo stood in the entrance, and for a moment, Suki saw a flicker of regret in his teal eyes. Then it was gone, and he raised his hand in a mock-salute. Suki resisted the urge to fling herself on him, instead turning on her heel and making her way back down the corridor that the guard had used to bring them there.

"Whatever he says to me, I know something is wrong." She murmured, the tears blurring her sight as she headed slowly back to her ship. "I came here in search of comfort, and instead I leave with more worries. When he touched me...that was no electric shock. That was magic - something no member of the Tennan family has ever wielded. Oh Seiryo, what have you _done_? How far will you really go to keep my crime a secret?"

--

Once sure he was alone, Seiryo returned to the small sitting area, dropping down onto the couch and rubbing his temples, closing his eyes as he muttered a curse under his breath.

"_Someone should introduce your sister to a backbone, Seiryo-san_." Tokimi's voice echoed in his head, and he jerked his head up in surprise, wincing as he jarred the throbbing headache that had begun at the base of his skull.

"What do you want?" He muttered. "I've spent all of this afternoon trying to work out a way of slipping Masaki's name into the police files without generating suspicion and my head is spinning. You're not really top of my contact list right now."

"_Why did she come here_?"

"She's frightened. She's just a kid still and she's not used to all of this." Seiryo said coldly. "Leave her out of it. You promised to keep her safe."

"_And you came very close to telling her the nature of our agreement, Seiryo-san_."

"I didn't and I wouldn't. I don't want to involve her in your twisted schemes." Seiryo snapped. "She and Mother both put far too much faith in the Tree of Life anyway. I'd rather she didn't know what we were trying to achieve."

"_That arrangement suits me, also_." Tokimi agreed. "_But it seems that Suki-kyou is not the only young lady to seek your company tonight._"

"What do you mean?" Suspicion flitted into Seiryo's gaze and he glanced around him, half expecting to see a companion materialise out of nowhere. "Is it that droid? Did you sent that wretched robot to spy on me now?"

"_No. Zero is still on Planet Earth_." Tokimi told him. "_I just thought you should be aware...that someone was listening to your conversation with your sister._"

"_What_?" Seiryo's eyes opened wide, and he was on his feet in a moment, hurrying across the living quarters to the entrance and forcing open the door, gazing out into the hall-way. Tokimi's laughter echoed in his head, and he muttered a string of unrepeatable words under his breath, banging the door shut again with some temper.

"Are you playing games with me?" He demanded.

"_Of course not. I don't play games with things that might compromise my plans._" Tokimi's humour was gone as soon as it had come. "_She's long gone now, you fool. Suki would have fallen over her, if she'd have been here when your sister left. But she was here all right. I felt her presence._"

"Another loose end?" Seiryo demanded. "Tokimi, why didn't you warn me?"

"_And give away our connection in front of your nervy, jumpy sister_?" Tokimi asked archly. "_Of course not. She is not reliable...and I don't trust her discretion_."

"Then tell me something useful." Seiryo buried his head in his hands, sighing heavily. "Who is this eavesdropper, and where can I find her?"

"_Ah_." There was a contemplative silence, then Tokimi spoke again. "_You are already acquainted with her...in fact, she is something of a colleague of yours_."

"A colleague?"

"_A colleague who claims an acquaintance with those we seek_." Tokimi agreed thoughtfully. "_You must stop her, Seiryo. Eliminate her, if you must - but she must not be allowed to relay what she knows to her contacts on the Earth. I have worked hard to keep Washu out of things as much as I can - I won't have that hard work undone by your careless tongue_."

"Tokimi, I'm more than prepared to do what you want me to do, and I'll take the woman out if that's what it takes." Seiryo snapped. "But it would help if you'd at least give me her name!"

"_Manners, Seiryo-san. You forget who serves whom_." Tokimi laughed, a hollow, humourless chuckle that ripped right through to Seiryo's soul, and he winced again as he felt her magic burn through his brain.

"Stop it! Just tell me!" He exclaimed. "I don't need your power play or your stupid tricks!"

"_Very well_." Like tendrils of a vine, Tokimi recoiled her magic, and Seiryo relaxed, running his fingers through his hair as he focused on her final two words.

"_Kiyone Makibi_."


	9. Chapter 9

**Chapter 9**

Now what had she got herself into?

Kiyone ran helter-skelter through the corridors of the Galaxy Police Headquarters, pausing briefly to catch her breath as she reached a crossroads in the tunnelway, and then haring off once more towards the general docking bay, Yagami and safety. Snippets of the conversation she had overheard echoed through her mind, tormenting and teasing at her as she ran.

"God only knows what I'm going to tell Washu." She gasped, her heart pounding fit to burst in her chest as she stumbled, almost falling headlong into the central control room of the regular division. Her tempo broken, she found she could not go any further, and she dropped down into a vacant seat, exhausted and frightened as she struggled to get her breath.

"I wish I'd been able to hear everything, although what I heard is incriminating enough." She muttered, fighting to bring her panicked heart-rate under control. "Seiryo Tennan _is_ involved in something. His father's death, it sounded like...I'm not sure. It...it wasn't clear. And the other thing...witchcraft. What did Lady Suki mean when she said that? I wish they hadn't spoken so quietly. So many gaps and yet none of it bodes well. I have to get back to Yagami. Whatever is going on here, it needs to be stopped."

She drew another ragged breath into her lungs, pulling herself to her feet.

"I can't stay here. Someone might see me and know something's up." She realised. "So much for having the potential for the elite division, Kiyone! You'll give yourself away in a heartbeat if you carry on like this. Get a grip on yourself or it won't just be Mihoshi you freak out this time. Calm down. Rationalise. It's not far to the docking bay...you can make it there, can't you?"

This thought gave her her second wind and, as she thought she heard footsteps along a distant hallway, she threw caution to the wind, fleeing for the safety of her spacecraft with every last ounce of her energy. At length she sank down into the drive room seat of the bulky red police craft, uttering a tired sigh of relief as she realised she had made it to her destination unobserved.

"But I'm not going back and doing it again." She decided. "It was a big enough risk sneaking off ship tonight while Mihoshi was still in the mess hall. Still, at least she's not back yet. That's one thing. What she doesn't know won't hurt her and it's probably better she doesn't know anything about Washu's request. Discretion never has been her strongest suit and besides, after tonight, whatever it is that's going on is obviously bigger than I thought it was. I don't want to put her in danger. She's a lot more prone to getting hurt than I am, thanks to her big mouth."

She sighed, leaning across the dashboard and flicking open the communications channel, waiting impatiently for the connection to Washu's laboratory on the Earth to be confirmed. At last the light flickered from red to green, and she bit her lip, gathering her composure.

"Washu? Are you there?" She murmured.

"Kiyone?" The scientist's voice was faint and crackly, but Kiyone could just about make out her words and relief flooded through her.

"Good. The line isn't great, but it will have to do." She said frankly. "Where are you talking from, anyway? Sounds like you're in the shower."

"Close. I was fixing a dimensional anomaly in the bathroom when I got your signal. I've re-routed it so that I can take it while I'm working." Washu replied. "Why? Kiyone, you sound agitated. Something going on that I should know about?"

"Lots of things, I think." Kiyone groaned, running her fingers through her thick dark hair. "Washu-chan, I think I was wrong about Seiryo Tennan. At least, I'm pretty sure that he's involved in something now...after tonight."

"The real Seiryo? Not a shape-shifter?"

"I'm pretty sure he's really who he says he is, Washu-san, but I guess I can't know for certain." Kiyone admitted. "He had a visit from his sister earlier on. I snuck down to the annexe to see if I could find something out and saw her being ushered into his quarters. It's not common for Juraian nobility to pay social calls on siblings in the force, and she looked really upset and troubled...so I stuck around and eavesdropped on as much of their conversation as I could. The doors are thick, unfortunately, and I didn't hear everything that they said. But it was pretty clear from what I did hear that there's something going on. I think it has something to do with the death of the other guy - their father."

"Interesting." Washu sounded thoughtful. "Are you suggesting that maybe Seiji Tennan wasn't murdered by bandits after all?"

"I don't know." Kiyone confessed. "But it sounded to me like Seiryo - or maybe both of them - knew a lot more about it than they've told people. And there was one other thing, as well."

"Go on...although what you've already given me is a lot to be thinking on." Washu responded. "What other thing?"

"Suki Tennan mentioned witchcraft." Kiyone's brow furrowed as she struggled to remember the young girl's phrasing. "I'm not sure exactly what she meant, but she said something like "did you have to trust in witchcraft?' and accused him of dabbling in dark magic."

"Dark magic, huh? The plot thickens." An intrigued note entered Washu's tone. "I don't suppose either of them elaborated?"

"Not that I heard, but like I said, it was difficult to make out everything." Kiyone replied. "And Seiryo-san is a highly trained agent. He'd be very wary of giving away too much about anything even in the privacy of his own quarters and when talking to his own sister. You never know when the walls might have ears."

"Well, tonight they had ears enough, so it seems." Washu laughed. "You're a star, Kiyone. Do you think that, if you poked around a little more, you could dig up any more connections? Anything that might explain exactly what kind of magic Suki Tennan was talking about?"

"I'd rather not, Washu." Kiyone sighed. "Honestly? Tonight scared me. I met him face to face earlier on and well, he's the kind of man you wouldn't want to be caught crossing...if you catch my drift. He could make a lot of trouble for Mihoshi and I if he had any idea that I'd been eavesdropping and I don't want to lose my job."

"I suppose that's fair." Washu agreed, but she sounded disappointed. "Well, if you do happen to hear anything else, Kiyone, get in touch. You know where to find me and I trust your judgement when it comes to finding information."

"If it comes." Kiyone agreed awkwardly. "Goodnight, Washu. Hopefully some of that will make better sense to you than it does to me."

She paused, then flipped the communicator off, leaning back in her seat and closing her eyes.

"Well, my job is done." She murmured. "Thank goodness I don't have to take a risk like that again. I guess I'm not cut out for this elite spying thing after all. It's creepy."

The sound of a bay door made her start, sitting upright in her chair as she registered the fact she had company.

"Mihoshi?" She got to her feet, smoothing down her uniform as she called out her colleague's name, expecting to see the blond haired officer enter the drive room at any moment. "Mihoshi, what time do you call this? I thought you just went down to the mess hall for a snack - you know we are meant to be on night patrol this evening!"

There was no response, and Kiyone frowned, making her way carefully across the drive room to the sliding door and pressing the button to open it. It hissed open and she stepped outside, casting a glance around her for her missing friend.

"Mihoshi?"

Again, there was no reply, and Kiyone bit her lip.

"Mihoshi, this isn't funny." She warned. "I don't want to play hide and seek tonight, all right? You've been long enough and I don't want another tardy on our record because you decided to spend a while too long at the noodle bar!"

Her words echoed around the empty ship, reverberating off the steel walls as they did so, and involuntarily she shivered, suddenly feeling cold. Slowly she turned on her heel, making her way back into the drive room and shutting the door behind her.

"I wish she wouldn't do this." She muttered. "We're already going to be late at this rate."

"Clumsy _and_ late. The regular division really are going to pot these days, aren't they?"

A smooth voice startled her and she let out a gasp, heart in her throat as she raised her eyes to Seiryo Tennan's cool teal ones. At her expression, he offered her a slight smile.

"Kiyone Makibi, isn't that right?" He added. Mutely Kiyone nodded, inwardly wondering if her cheeks were blazing as red as she thought they were, and whether he was able to read her guilt just by looking at her face.

"How did you get in here?" She blurted out at length, and Seiryo laughed, a cold, chilling laugh as he folded his arms across his chest.

"I have ways." He said quietly. "Elite officers are trained to enter and leave premises without being observed. Something which you might have done well to learn, Kiyone Makibi...it's never wise to leave a trace of yourself behind when you go trespassing into other people's quarters."

"I didn't!" Kiyone's eyes widened with a mixture of surprise and horror and she took a step backwards, feeling the coldness of the door as she fumbled for the button to open it. "Agent Tennan, sir, I don't know why you're here but..."

"No, we both know why I'm here." Seiryo's eyes seemed to flicker with a strange, unearthly light, and he took a step towards her, reaching out a hand and placing it firmly on her shoulder. Instinctively she cringed away from his touch, and his smile froze on his lips.

"We both know that I was visited by my sister this evening." He continued. "Only you weren't invited to the discussion, Detective Makibi. Do you know what the penalties are for spying on the private affairs of a superior officer? Heavy, I'd wager...especially for one with your rather unconventional, chequered history. Wouldn't you agree?"

"I don't know what you mean." Kiyone dropped her gaze, but Seiryo touched his fingers to her chin, gently raising her face to his once more. At his touch, Kiyone felt a slight flicker of energy pass between them and she stared at him in surprise. "Agent Tennan, what are you doing?"

"I'm finding out precisely why you felt it necessary to visit the annexe this evening." Seiryo spoke quietly. "And I want the truth from you, if you please. I'm not a patient man and I don't have time for liars. You'll either tell me of your own free will, or I'll find another way to get it out of you."

He paused, eying her carefully, then,

"Believe me, the first method is a lot less painful than the second." He added. "That's a whole area of Elite training you probably don't want to experience."

Kiyone gathered her wits, searching her brain for a plausible explanation.

"I...I guess I wanted to see you again." She blurted out, saying the first thing that came into her head and inwardly berating herself for it the moment the words had left her lips. "I mean...well..."

She faltered, and Seiryo seemed to hesitate, withdrawing his hand from her shoulder as he regarded her with some surprise.

"You wanted to see me again?" He repeated, a mixture of confusion and scepticism in his tone. "In what sense, see me again?"

Kiyone knew that she could not go any redder, but she swallowed her misgivings, raising her gaze bravely to his.

"Is it so strange to admire an agent who has had as much success as you have?" She asked earnestly, trying her best to make herself look fey and lovesick as she did so. "I've heard so much about you, Agent Tennan, and all of it has been good. When I met you this afternoon, I...I was hoping to see you. Hanging around so that I could...and then you spoke to me and I suppose that..."

She trailed off again, and Seiryo sent her an incredulous look. Then he let out a peal of derisive laughter.

"I see." He said, amused. "You have high aspirations for one with so little training and breeding, Kiyone Makibi. But you have guts, I'll give you that."

He paused, eying her for a moment, then,

"Unfortunately, you're also a very poor liar, and I am a very good agent." He added, the humour dying from his face in an instant. "You weren't there to play the groupie any more than my sister was there to talk about the weather. Enough toying with me, Detective Makibi. Tell me why you came to my quarters tonight, and more, what you overheard between sister and brother."

Kiyone faced him stonily, and anger flickered in Seiryo's expression. He raised his hand, bringing it hard across her cheek and, stunned for a moment by the unexpected shock of pain, Kiyone stumbled back against the wall, staring at him in horror and disbelief.

"Now, if you please, the truth." Seiryo's tones had become dangerously low, and the sinister flare was back in his teal eyes. Suki's words about dark magic flitted through Kiyone's head and she swallowed hard, shaking her head.

"I told you the truth." She whispered.

"I see." Seiryo's eyes narrowed, his hand moving to his belt where his sword was sheathed. "And would you swear on your life that that was the case?"

"I...I..."

"Well? Would you or wouldn't you, Detective?" Seiryo raised an eyebrow, pulling his sword from it's scabbard and holding it aloft as it flickered and flared into a white hot blade. "It's not a hard question."

"What are you going to do with that?" Kiyone eyed the blade fearfully. "Agent Tennan, I don't understand. Really! I did see Suki-kyou coming to visit you, and I was in the annexe when I shouldn't have been. But I didn't go there for any reason other than curiosity. I've heard so much about the Elite division but I've never been into an Agent's quarters before and I suppose...I suppose I remembered what you said about becoming an Elite myself. I wanted to see...I didn't mean to encroach...or overhear."

Seiryo pursed his lips.

"And what, exactly, did you overhear?" He asked, an unpleasant tone in his voice. Kiyone scolded herself once more for her careless choice of words, but she shook her head.

"Nothing. Nothing at all, really." She said hastily. "Just that Lady Suki was missing you and that she wanted to go home. That her father's death was troubling her. That's all. Really. I...I swear."

"Do you now?" Seiryo pondered on this for a moment. Then his blade flickered out, and he returned it to his sheath. Kiyone let out a sigh of relief.

"I'm sorry." She added. "I know that you must be upset about your father's death. I mean, it was sudden and...and I didn't mean to intrude."

"Yes, it was sudden." Seiryo agreed absently. "But you're wrong if you think I'm upset about it. The old man and I didn't get along too well, if you want the truth. Having him out of the way would have been wonderful, if it had come about when I wasn't still in office here."

Kiyone stared at him, her eyes becoming big as she digested this.

"But then you don't need me to tell you that." Seiryo shrugged. "You already know that I hated my father and that I'm not here in an attempt to avenge his death. Don't you?"

Kiyone did not respond, and Seiryo smiled.

"Yes, I'm not a fool." He agreed. "And nor are you, Detective Makibi. You know, I've heard such great things about you. Yes, your methods have often been headstrong and unconventional, but I respect that. Rules are only there to restrain the ones who don't have innovation on their side. You've had many successes and I know you're very well thought of among the regular division. See, I do my homework on people when I meet them - and every time I hear your name mentioned, I hear a wealth of positive information. Isn't that nice to know? That you're so well thought of among your colleagues here at the Galaxy Police?"

"Yes, sir." Kiyone eyed her companion warily. "Although I don't know why you're telling me this."

"Well, you see, I know that I'm not dealing with a simple regular police officer when I talk to you." Seiryo shrugged his shoulders. "I'm dealing with someone who's shrewd and calculating - perhaps not as much so as I am, but shrewd enough to conceal their true motives behind lies and quick thinking. I respect that, you know. It shows initiative...something the Galaxy Police are sadly lacking these days."

Kiyone bit her lip, a cold chill touching her heart.

"You're going to kill me, aren't you?" She whispered. Seiryo started, then he laughed, nodding his head.

"See, I knew you were smart." He agreed. "It's not personal, but I'm afraid I have no choice. You see, whether you meant to be there or not, you overheard far more of that conversation than you should have. And you're now a liability. Even if you swear blind to me that you won't share your information with anyone else, I can't take the chance that you're lying or that some fool somewhere might believe you and raise the alarm. You really shouldn't have come to the annexe tonight, Detective Makibi. It's not a place for regular officers after hours."

Kiyone fumbled at her belt for her blaster, raising it and pointing it at her companion.

"I can fight too, you know." She objected. "And do you want to know what I really heard, Agent Tennan? I heard enough to implicate you in the death of your father Seiji, that's what."

"Yes, I thought you might have done." Seiryo's eyes became flinty as he considered. "I didn't kill my father, Kiyone-san...but I probably should have, when I had the chance. As it is..."

"As it is, what?" Kiyone demanded. Seiryo shook his head.

"Details don't matter to dead detectives." He said frankly. He raised his arm, and the police blaster flew from Kiyone's grip into his waiting one. "You shouldn't wave this around. It's dangerous. You might get hurt."

"But..." Kiyone's eyes almost popped out of her head as he tossed the gun aside, advancing on her. As his hands made contact with her arms, she was aware of that faint pulse of energy once more and she struggled against his grip, but he was stronger than her and he had her held fast.

"It's a shame that you won't get to fulfil all that potential your commander believes you have." Seiryo spoke in soft, regretful tones. "But you have to understand that the Tennan family is more important than one curious detective's life when it comes to the big scheme of things. And I must do what I have to do. Good night, Detective Makibi. It was nice to have met you."

With that he pushed his hand to her body, and Kiyone felt a surge of hot, pulsing energy rip through her, stealing up through her rib cage and encircling her heart, squeezing it so tightly she felt sure it was going to burst. She struggled to draw air into her lungs, but the whole of her body felt like it was on fire, and the world became a dizzy, spinning place as the tendrils of energy reached out across more and more of her captive form.

"Kiyone?"

As Kiyone felt her grip on consciousness and life fading away from her, she was sure that she heard someone calling her name somewhere in the distance and she struggled to focus on it as she felt herself falling to the floor. She hit the ground with a hard thump, pain still ricocheting through her as she struggled to remember how to breathe and what exactly her body was supposed to do in order to keep alive. Her lungs seemed clogged and heavy, and try as she may she could not force air into them as she felt her whole body beginning to go limp. Somewhere in the swirling mists that made up her glazing vision, she was aware of Seiryo standing over her, an unreadable expression on his face.

"It's done, Tokimi." He said quietly. "And someone comes...I can't be seen here or all your plans will be for nothing."

Kiyone fought hard against the onset of darkness, struggling to comprehend what was happening. As she did so, Seiryo's form seemed to glimmer and then fade completely, until he was no longer in her line of sight.

"Kiyone? Geez, Kiyone, where _are _you?"

There was that voice again, and Kiyone forced herself to stay conscious. The sound of company lit a tiny spark of hope within her and with an almost superhuman effort she managed at last to gasp in air, fighting for every breath that she dragged into her scorched lungs. Somehow she knew it meant help, although her scrambled thoughts would not allow her to put voice to face and identify her unsuspecting saviour. A few more seconds of Seiryo's touch and she knew she would have been done for. As it was, she hovered between consciousness and death, determined not to let go so easily.

"_Kiyone_?"

Now the voice was closer, and Kiyone could hear horror in its tones as they entered the drive room. There was the sound of frantic footsteps, then someone was bending over her and she was aware of something gripping her hand.

"Kiyone, what happened to you?" The woman's eyes were big with alarm and somewhere deep in her brain, Kiyone registered who the speaker was.

"Mi...ho...shi?" She gasped.

"Of course. Who else would be here at this time of night?" Mihoshi looked confused. "Did you pass out or fall over or something, Kiyone? You're on the floor - what happened?"

Kiyone closed her eyes, knowing that she was fighting a losing battle against the waves of unconsciousness and when she did not reply, her companion seemed to realise that her situation was more serious than a simple fall.

"Something bad happened, didn't it?" She asked anxiously, and Kiyone felt her friend squeeze her hand. "Oh, Kiyone, did someone come here? Did they attack you? Are you badly hurt?"

"Attacked...by..." Kiyone faltered, and Mihoshi's expression became alarmed.

"Oh no! Kiyone, hang on! Don't go to sleep! I'll help you...somehow! Don't worry! I will...just let me think for a minute. I'm sure I can think of something and you'll be just fine! I promise!"

Kiyone summoned all of her remaining energy, forcing her thoughts into a coherent order as she did so. She drew another ragged gasp into her protesting lungs.

"To Washu." She managed faintly, and then, as a fleeting memory of Seiryo's last words entered her mind, "To...ki...mi."

--------

So Tenchi had left Osaka.

Zero stepped off the busy train at Kurashiki, glancing around the bustling station for any kind of landmark.

"You must not lose track of him, Zero." Clay's words echoed in her head, reminding her all too well of her mission on the Earth. "Or you and I will both answer to Tokimi-sama for your failure. Do not let me down, my creation. Find Tenchi Masaki and obtain the samples which I need. Time grows short. Tokimi-sama loses patience with us both."

She sighed, glancing down at her human hands and for an instant, she hated their illusory nature.

"I'm just another girl, travelling into the mountains." She said softly. "But if only they knew. And if only the Doctor would listen to me. I know there's something badly wrong with my programming and I know that Tokimi did something to me when she got so angry and blasted my circuits. Nothing has been the same since then. I never hesitated in the past. Why am I hesitating now? What is the significance of Tenchi Masaki that I no longer wish to obey my orders?"

Finding no answer immediately forthcoming, she made her way slowly out of the crowded station complex, aware from the snippets of conversation around her that she wasn't the only traveller from Osaka fleeing to the safety of the mountains. Earthlings were prone to panic, she mused absently, glancing at them in contempt. No wonder this world was such a backward, hopeless place.

"But then, this world has Tenchi." She admitted to herself, stepping outside into the bright sunlight. "And therefore I don't want to leave it - not yet. Space is cold. At least here there are colours and...and sunlight and other things. I never stopped to look at the scenery before. Whatever Tokimi did to me, it opened my eyes in more ways than one. I just wish I could get a grip on it. I'm becoming inefficient and I don't like it."

She paused, leaning up against the wall of the station as she closed her eyes, processing the coordinates that Dr Clay had sent along with his final instruction.

"Be on your guard, Zero." He had warned her. "You must infiltrate his very family in order to complete this mission, and for that you must have no mistakes in your backstory nor your facade. Dangerous people surround Tenchi Masaki, and you would do well to beware of them."

"Washu." Zero frowned, as the file flitted unbidden across her sensors. "I don't understand why Dr Clay and Tokimi-sama fear her, but I know that they do."

Checking to make sure she was unobserved, she blurred her form into nothing, re-materialising at the edge of a peaceful, beautiful mountain valley and for a moment she just stood there, absorbing the landscape around her. Then she got a grip on herself, glancing down instead to the house where she knew her target resided.

"No doubt his pirate will be there too." She muttered, dislike in her tone as she remembered Ryoko. "I thought for sure that by infiltrating Earth's military investigation team I would have taken care of her already, but Dr Clay told me they fled Osaka together, so she is probably with him. Well, she will have to hope that she doesn't get in my way. I am programmed to kill anyone who does, after all - and I would take great pleasure in destroying that one. She is too close to Tenchi. I don't like it - she's more of a risk than this Washu woman Dr Clay warned me about."

She pursed her lips, gazing down at her arms and legs as she carefully considered her best mode of attack.

"Tenchi is gentle, and compassionate." She reasoned thoughtfully, as the edges of her clothing began to shimmer, becoming ragged and torn as she changed her appearance. "If he considers that I've been attacked, he'll be bound to show me sympathy. And he won't turn me away. He did come to save my life once, after all. I don't see why he wouldn't help me again."

She glanced at her arms, watching as the smooth pale skin she had chosen for her Yume disguise became mottled with bruises and she raised a finger to her cheek, tracing an imaginary line from her eye to her jaw as an ugly red scrape began to materialise through her flawless complexion. A slight smile touched her lips as the marks of battle became stronger all across her body, thick red stains patching her clothing. Finally, she pulled the neat band from her hair, observing its disappearance with some amusement as the thick dark waves fell loose and messy around her shoulders.

"A damsel in distress." She murmured, mustering tears in her opaque lilac eyes. "Perfect."

She made her way carefully down the steep mountain path, approaching the house slowly and cautiously as she heard the sound of voices from within. An elder gentleman stood not far from the door, a broom in his hand, but there was little evidence of him doing any actual sweeping, and he cast her a smile as she approached, concern and curiosity flickering in his dark reddish eyes as he surveyed her condition.

"Well, who might you be?" He asked gently, dumping the broom against the wall as he did so. "You look hurt...has something happened to you, my child?"

Zero swallowed hard, pretending to stumble, but the old man was there, grasping her hands in his and pulling her to her feet as he eyed her gently.

"You've come a long way?" He asked. "Tell me what's the matter...do you seek the shrine priest? Or something else?"

"I...I'm a friend of Tenchi's. From Osaka." Zero's voice trembled. "Please...is he here? I...I came to...to see him."

"Tenchi? Yes." The old man looked thoughtful, then nodded his head. "But you're in no state to be running around the mountain. Please, come sit down. I will fetch Tenchi to you - you clearly need to rest. Perhaps some hot tea would help?"

"No...thank you sir, I couldn't drink anything." Zero shook her head, offering him a faint smile. "Thank you. You must be Tenchi's grandfather, am I right?"

"You're a perceptive girl." The old man smiled, gently escorting her to the wooden summer seats and bowing his head to her mock-formally. "My name is Katsuhito Masaki, and I am the priest of the Masaki shrine. What might your name be?"

"Yume." For a moment Zero faltered, then re-gathered her composure, commanding the tears she had so carefully prepared to spill carelessly down her cheeks. "Oh, thank you for being so kind. I didn't know where else to go! There was trouble in Osaka, like you said, and my father...my father..."

She faltered, lowering her lashes.

"I didn't know who else to go to." She whispered. "Please, I must speak to Tenchi."

"Yume?" At that moment Tenchi's own voice interrupted the conversation and she raised her head, something jolting through her circuits as she took in the alarm and consternation that crossed his face. He hurried to her side, grabbing her by the hand and glancing up at his grandfather. "What in hell happened? Why are you here? What's going on?"

"Your young friend here has been through a very nasty time, so it seems." Katsuhito said quietly. "She has come a long way, Tenchi, so let her rest. There is plenty of time for her to tell her story."

"Tenchi, I'm sorry." Zero eyed him earnestly. "But I didn't know who else I could trust."

"Something happened in Osaka, didn't it?" Tenchi bit his lip, and Zero nodded.

"There was a riot. People have gone crazy." She whispered. "My father...Tenchi...he...they didn't...he's gone."

Fresh tears glittered across her lashes, and Tenchi's grip on her hand tightened.

"Oh Yume, I'm sorry." He murmured. "You must have been so frightened."

"I had to get away from that place. They thought they'd killed me too, but...but they didn't. They just...just knocked me out for a while." Zero warmed to her story, forcing herself to stay focused on the matter in hand. "I'm so tired, Tenchi...I've come such a long way. And I know we barely know one another, but I don't have any other family and I don't want to be in Osaka. Lots of people were coming to the mountains in search of safety and I...I decided to do the same. When I heard that the shrine here was the Masaki shrine, I knew it had to be your family. Or I hoped...I hoped I was right."

"Well, you were." Tenchi told her gently. "Listen, Grandfather is right. You've been through a terrible ordeal and you need to rest. You can stay here as long as you need...can't she, Grandpa?"

This last to Katsuhito, who eyed Zero for a moment, then nodded gravely.

"Perhaps Washu-san would take a look at her injuries." He suggested, and alarm flooded through the droid at this suggestion. She shook her head.

"Really, I'm not badly hurt. Just bruised." She said quickly. "And...and tired. Rest sounds...a good idea. But I don't want to impose. I know you...have your own...own problems at the moment."

She hesitated, then, "Is Ryoko here too?"

"Of course." Tenchi agreed. "Why? Are they still looking for her in Osaka?"

"Yes." Zero nodded her head. "But if she's here, that means she's safe and they won't find her. I'm glad. After all, it wasn't aliens who killed my...my father. It was...other people. Gone mad, all of them."

She bit her lip, eying him from beneath lowered lashes and was gratified to see the genuine compassion in her companion's dark eyes. "You're so kind, Tenchi."

"Well, in a sense I feel like all of this has been my fault." Tenchi admitted. "That guy, whoever he was, he came looking for me. And even if he made a mistake, well, it all began because he knew my name."

"Maybe he was looking for another Tenchi Masaki." Zero suggested. "There are a lot of Masakis in the Osaka phone directory, you know."

"Really?" Tenchi looked surprised. Zero nodded. She blushed.

"After we met, I looked for your number, but I couldn't find which one you were." She admitted. "I'm sorry."

"Right now you have nothing to be sorry for, and my phone number is the least of your problems." Gently Tenchi hauled her to her feet, leading her into the house proper. "Let's get you inside and cleaned up, all right? Even if you're not badly hurt, getting Washu to look at you isn't a bad idea. She saved Grandfather's life once, you know - her medical knowledge is pretty good, all told. And if you were knocked out, you might have a concussion."

He looked embarrassed.

"Besides, I can't help you to wash." He added. "Our bathroom is a...little bit different from the average bathroom, and I don't think Ryoko would take it very well if I volunteered to come inside with you."

A pang shot through Zero's sensors, and she frowned.

"I see." She murmured. "You really love her, don't you?"

"Yes, I do." Tenchi looked surprised. "Wherever she came from and whatever she can do...we've been through a lot together."

"And this Washu? Who is she?"

"Ryoko's mother." Tenchi smiled. "She's a touch eccentric, but she does know her science. You can trust her to help, Yume. Believe me. She seems sharp on first acquaintance, but she's quite soft deep down."

"I should probably take offence at that."

A fresh voice joined the conversation at that moment, making both Tenchi and his companion jump, and the young Prince of Jurai turned, sheepishness crossing his expression as he surveyed the speaker. Zero frowned, taking in the appearance of the newcomer with a mixture of confusion and dismay.

"Sorry, Washu-chan. I didn't mean you to hear that." Tenchi said ruefully. "But I am glad you're around. Do you have a minute?"

The newcomer turned sharp green eyes on Tenchi's companion, curiosity burning in their depths. She nodded.

"I always have time for you, Tenchi." She agreed amiably. "What's going on? Who's this?"

"_You're _Ryoko's mother?" Zero demanded, the words out before she could call them back. Washu laughed.

"In a manner of speaking." She agreed. "Why? Don't you think I look old enough to have a grown daughter like Ryoko running around causing mayhem and havoc?"

"You look...like a child." Zero faltered, berating her lack of composure around the diminuitive scientist, who eyed her keenly, nodding her head.

"Yes, but appearances can be deceptive." She said softly. "I didn't catch your name?"

"Washu, this is Yume. She's a friend of mine from Osaka." Tenchi hastened to explain, and Zero struggled to regain her composure. Had Washu been referring to her own appearance? Or to that of the girl who was now invading their home under false pretences? Suddenly she realised that whoever and whatever Washu was, Tokimi and Clay had been right. She was, potentially, a danger...although in what sense she could not yet work out. Something about the woman's presence confused her senses, eluding logical explanation, and she frowned, forcing her concentration back to the matter at hand. Clay had warned her to be careful, after all. She would just have to make sure she did not slip up.

"And that's why she's here." Tenchi concluded. Washu cocked her head on one side, casting Zero a smile.

"I'm sorry about your father." She said quietly. "And I'm not surprised that Tenchi-kun has let you stay here while you work out what you're going to do next. If you come with me, I'll take a look at you and make sure you're not worse hurt than you think you are. I'm sure that there are some of Ayeka's things here from their last visit - we can surely find her something better to wear than those clothes. They're ruined, and I wouldn't wish any of Ryoko's wardrobe on the poor girl."

"Ayeka?" Zero looked startled, then cursed herself inwardly for revealing her surprise. Washu smiled, producing a row of perfect white teeth.

"Tenchi's cousin." She agreed. "Will you come with me, Yume-san? I'm sure you want to wash...and Tenchi has to go explain to the rest of the household why we suddenly have another houseguest."

A meaningful look passed between scientist and student at this point, and Tenchi looked troubled.

"Yes, I guess so." He agreed. "All right, Washu-chan. I'll leave Yume in your capable hands."

He flashed Zero a smile, squeezing her hand reassuringly.

"You're in safe hands now." He assured her. "Trust in Washu. She knows what she's doing and she will help you."

Zero turned her gaze from his to his red-haired companion, and a feeling of trepidation curled up inside of her as the scientist offered her a disarming smile.

"It's nice to know someone has faith in my methods." Washu said lightly. "All right, Yume...this way."


	10. Chapter 10

**Chapter 10**

"Ryoko, please, come down from there!"

Tenchi sighed, craning his neck to better make out the silhouette of his paramour, huddled on the end of the shrine roof. "Do I have to get Grandpa's ladder and come up there to talk sense into you? What else did you expect me to do? The girl just lost her father and it's at least partly my fault that all of this has happened. Did you expect me to just turn her away?"

"I thought you had more sense than to fall for a sobstory and a girl's tears." Ryoko materialised in front of him, her expression dark and stony as she folded her arms across her chest. "I told you that that girl means trouble, Tenchi. She either wants you for herself, or she's trying to find out who and what we are for her alienphobic Earth friends who are suddenly springing up all over Japan. I can't believe you let her into your home without even asking questions! You must be mad!"

"Ryoko, she's my friend." Tenchi frowned. "And she's been nothing but nice to you, even though she knows who you are. You could cut her some slack, you know. You're too paranoid sometimes, and that's a fact."

"Am I?" Ryoko arched an eyebrow, glaring at him. "And what would you be, when you've spent generations being chased across the galaxy by one force or another? Your problem is you want to help everyone, but you don't realise they don't all think the same as you. Just because you'd never do these things doesn't mean other people wouldn't. For a Prince of Jurai you can sure be gullible sometimes. And it drives me crazy, that's all."

"Ryoko."

Tenchi put a hand on her shoulder, but she shook it off, turning her back on him.

"Oh, come on. This is crazy." Frustration flared in his heart. "I thought we'd already settled the matter of your jealousy and me and other women. I told you there was no other pretty girl in Osaka and that hasn't changed. Your paranoia is the only thing that can drive us apart, not some other woman. You need to get a grip on your insecurities and realise not everyone is out to get you. Yume's lost someone she loves...can't you at least try and find it in you to understand that?"

Ryoko stiffened, wheeling on him and putting her hands on her hips.

"I'm not jealous." She said quietly. "You don't understand and you never listen to me when I try and give you a warning. I don't know how I know it, but I know that there's something about that girl and I want you to be careful, that's all. What do you really know about her, anyway? Her name? You don't even know her last name, or where she lives or anything about her family. You don't know that she has a father in the police force or that she even has a father at all. She just appeared one night and because you saved her life you think she must be helpless and innocent. Well, that doesn't always follow."

"I seem to remember that I knew even less about you when we first met." Tenchi pointed out acidly. Ryoko scowled.

"Yes. You rescued me from Ryo Ohki's wreckage and I fooled you into thinking I was innocent and the victim for a whole evening, before Mihoshi showed you her ID and convinced you otherwise." She agreed. "I could have killed the both of you that night, had I been so inclined - but I wasn't. That's my point. You don't have a clue what Yume's real motives are. Just because she seems like a victim doesn't mean she is one. I'm telling you - you're being blind."

"Or you're being unreasonable." Tenchi sighed, running his fingers through his hair. "Washu didn't make any demur about her being here, when I introduced them. If you're right and this girl is so dangerous, don't you think she'd have said something? She's a pretty good judge of character, all told."

"Washu and I work in different ways, even if we do share genes." Ryoko snapped. "She only ever tells people what she thinks they need to know. Me, I'm up front about things and I'm telling you, there's something wrong with this one."

"Well, then tell me why you think that." Tenchi asked reasonably. "If it's not about her being a girl and you thinking she has a crush on me, what? What has she done to make you suspicious?"

"Nothing." Ryoko responded. "Which is why I'm suspicious of her."

"You're making less sense the longer we have this conversation." Tenchi sighed, rubbing his temples. "Ryoko, you're being crazy. I don't even understand where you're coming from and I don't want you going up to her and causing trouble. You didn't see her when she arrived. Covered in blood and bruises and half in tears."

"Sounds to me like she knows just how to elicit sympathy from a soft-hearted prince." Ryoko muttered. Tenchi groaned.

"_Ryoko_!"

"Look, I can't tell you why it is I think she's trouble." Ryoko sighed. "I do think she has a crush on you, and I wouldn't be surprised if she was spying for earth forces - it was convenient, how quickly those men apprehended me after she appeared in our lives. But there's something else as well. It's happened to me before, you know...when I've had a bad feeling about someone and they've proven to be the kind of person who slits throats first and asks questions later. When you're a pirate, it pays to have a sixth sense about who's likely to turn on you and who you can do business with without risking your life. And Yume is not all she seems."

"And what if you're wrong?" Tenchi asked softly, reaching out to take her by the hand. "Ryoko, I know you had a tough ride when you were a pirate. You couldn't trust in people and everyone had an ulterior motive. But not everything works on those terms. And I prefer to believe in people until I have evidence to the contrary. You know that. I don't think Yume means us any harm. I think she's what she says - an earth girl in trouble."

"I know." Ryoko turned troubled eyes on her companion. "And I'm afraid it might be your funeral, if you're wrong. That Tennan guy meant business when he came looking for you, Tenchi...I don't like it."

"You think Yume is involved with Seiryo Tennan?" Tenchi's eyes widened with shock. "Ryoko, now you're grasping at straws!"

"I never said that." Ryoko shook her head. "I just meant that with one dark force definitely interested in you, it wouldn't hurt to be a bit more careful in your choice of friends. That's all."

"Nothing is going to happen to me, Ryoko-chan. I can take care of myself." Tenchi assured her. "And I always have you there to back me up, don't I?"

"You know you do." Ryoko looked sad. "But I'm not happy with this, Tenchi. I don't trust her and I wish you hadn't let her stay here. As if things aren't complicated enough."

"Well, the decision is made, and I still think you're overreacting." Tenchi said firmly. "Not everyone has secrets, Ryoko."

"I beg to differ." Ryoko said darkly. "But I guess there's not much I can do about it. Just I'll be keeping my eye on her while she's here, you can count on that. Whatever she's up to, she's not going to be doing it while she's in this house - I promise."

Before Tenchi could respond, there was a yowl from the undergrowth and Ryo Ohki shot out from the bushes, leaping up onto Ryoko's shoulder and meeting her mistress's startled gaze with an urgent one of her own. Ryoko frowned, reaching up to pluck the small creature off her shoulder, stroking her fur absently as she did so.

"What's eating you?" She asked. "Tenchi and I are in the middle of something - what's up?"

Ryo Ohki let out another yowl and Tenchi could see that the cabbit was more than a little bit agitated. He cast Ryoko a curious look.

"What does she say?"

Ryoko raised her gaze to the clouds.

"She said Yagami's overhead and entering Earth's orbit." She said quietly. "Why would Kiyone come here?"

"Yagami?" Tenchi looked startled. "But isn't Kiyone helping Washu spy on Seiryo Tennan? Maybe she's bringing a report herself this time."

"No...no." Ryoko shook her head. "Ryo Ohki is too upset. I think it's a distress flare, Tenchi. Yagami's in trouble - or someone aboard it is."

"Ryo Ohki?" Tenchi cast the cabbit an anxious look, and Ryo Ohki mewed, pawing at the air. Ryoko nodded.

"I'm right. It _is_ a distress flare and from the way Ryo Ohki's reacting, I think we should do something about it." She said quietly. "Tenchi, run back to the house and get Washu. Forget that brat Yume for a moment - if this is something to do with Washu's arrangement with Kiyone, she should be here to hear it. Ryo Ohki and I will go up there and find out what's going on. I think there's something wrong with the ship that's preventing it from breaking the Earth's atmosphere, so they might need help from another spaceship."

Tenchi hesitated for a moment, then nodded his head.

"All right, I'm going." He agreed. "But be careful, Ryoko. We don't want anyone to see Ryo Ohki flying over the mountaintops."

"I'll be careful." Ryoko assured him grimly. "All right, Ryo Ohki. Time to go see what exactly is going on aboard that spaceship."

----

"Oh, someone, please answer me!"

Mihoshi pushed her hand down hard on the red button once more. "Please, I need your help! It's an emergency!"

She turned, glancing across the drive room to the still form of her colleague. Kiyone had lost consciousness before they had even left Galaxy Police Headquarters and though she drew rasping, shallow breaths into her lungs, Mihoshi was frightened by her colleague's strange pallor. She did not know what had hurt Kiyone, only that whatever it had been had been strong, and that her friend may yet die.

Forcing Yagami across space at three times the normal speed had finally taken its toll, however, and with an ominous boom the rear engine had blown out as the ship had entered the Earth's orbit, stopping them dead in their tracks and causing fresh panic to course through the scatterbrained officer's head.

"Please!" She exclaimed, banging the button once more. "Someone must be able to hear me! Please, respond to me! This is the Galaxy Police craft Yagami to anyone who's listening. I need help! Please! It's an emergency!"

At first there was no reply. Then, from somewhere in the swirling mists of Earth's atmosphere she was sure she heard a distinctive yowl and she ran to the side window, gazing out across the darkness in hope and anticipation.

"Ryo Ohki?" She murmured, as a speck in the distance became clearer and clearer. "Oh, thank goodness! Kiyone, it's going to be all right! Just hang in there...Ryoko's coming to get us!"

She hastened down by her colleague's side, putting a gentle hand to Kiyone's cheek as she gauged her companion's condition. She had been afraid to move her, unsure what injuries the Detective had sustained, so she had pulled the nearest bedding to hand into the drive room, padding them around her in a futile attempt to make her friend comfortable. Kiyone had not opened her eyes, but the continued sound of her breathing had driven Mihoshi this far, and as she glanced at the patient now, Mihoshi realised that Kiyone was still fighting.

"You're going to be all right now." She said softly. "I've done as you asked me...I've brought you to Washu and Ryoko will make sure you get there safely. It's all going to be just fine, you'll see."

"Kiyone?"

The communication screen flickered into life as Ryoko drew her craft alongside the Yagami. "Kiyone, are you there? It's Ryoko - Ryo Ohki took your distress call. What in hell's happened?"

"Ryoko!" Mihoshi hurried back to the front of the ship, eying the pirate in relief. "Oh, I'm so happy to see you!"

"Mihoshi?" Ryoko frowned. "Where's Kiyone?"

Tears welled in Mihoshi's big blue eyes and she stepped back, gesturing behind her across the drive room where her stricken companion lay. Ryoko's eyes opened wide and she muttered a curse.

"What happened?"

"I don't know. I found her like this when I got back to Yagami last night." Mihoshi's voice wavered. "She told me to bring her to Washu so I've tried, only Yagami's engine has blown because I was going so fast and I couldn't get to the Earth. And I've been sending distress signals out for what seems like forever and I didn't think anyone could hear me!"

"Well, Ryo Ohki did." Ryoko's mouth set in a grim line. "All right, Mihoshi. This is what we're going to do. Can you release the connecting tunnel still, without engine power? And connect it to Ryo Ohki?"

"Yes." Mihoshi nodded, reaching out to press the button. An answering clang told her she'd released the right thing, and the metal tunnel snaked across space, making contact with the pirate vessel with another resounding clang.

"Then I'm coming aboard." Ryoko said decidedly. "And you get yourself aboard Ryo Ohki, all right? I'm going to teleport in and teleport Kiyone out of there...it's quicker than carrying her. But I'm going to have to be careful and I don't want to make two trips. If you run along the gangway to Ryo Ohki while I take care of Kiyone, it will be faster all round. I'll release it when I leave Yagami, so you needn't worry about that."

"I'm coming right away." Mihoshi nodded her head eagerly. "Thank you, Ryoko. I knew you and Ryo Ohki would be able to help."

"Well, I hope so." Ryoko admitted. "Okay. Ryo Ohki has opened her hatch. Get moving and I'll see you in her drive room in a few minutes."

"Okay!" Mihoshi gave a clumsy salute, then reached to flick the communicator off, casting one last glance at Kiyone and then haring out of the drive room, making her way down to the bay where the connecting tunnel's entrance was situated. In her eagerness she almost stumbled and fell headlong into it, but she managed to check herself at the last minute, hurrying across the unstable walkway and stepping into Ryo Ohki's red-domed drive room with a sigh of satisfaction. As she did so, she heard the clang of the tunnel being released, and then Ryoko materialised beside her, the still Kiyone in her arms. Without a word, she set the injured detective down on Ryo Ohki's floor, and the cabbit ship let out a mournful mew.

"To the Earth, Ryo Ohki. And pronto." Ryoko said quietly. "Kiyone's with us, but she doesn't look real good."

"I hope she's not mad at me for leaving Yagami parked in space like that." Mihoshi gazed out across the stars at the bulky red form they were leaving behind. "I didn't mean to total the engine, but I was so worried. I thought she might stop breathing...she wouldn't wake up after she told me to take her to Washu. I couldn't ask her what I should do."

Ryoko ran her hands over Ryo Ohki's spherical controls, casting her companion a serious look.

"I think you did the only thing you could do, and you were right to take the risk." She said soberly. "Besides, Ryo Ohki and I were on hand to help out, and Ryo Ohki's particularly sensitive to Yagami's signal these days. You don't need to worry, Mihoshi. I told Tenchi to get Washu, so she'll be there when we land."

"But how did you know Kiyone wanted Washu?" Mihoshi looked confused.

"Kiyone's been spying for her. Didn't you know?"

"Spying?" Surprise flooded Mihoshi's features. "No, she didn't tell me. Why was she spying? What's happening?"

"I guess she didn't want to put you in any danger." Ryoko bit her lip. "I'll let Washu explain it to you. But if Kiyone got hurt because of one of her mad ideas..."

Mihoshi frowned, shaking her head.

"Washu wouldn't have let Kiyone get hurt." She said firmly. "And besides, if she had, why would Kiyone want to come here? It doesn't make any sense."

"Well, I guess it's too late to ascribe blame now." Ryoko sighed, as the Masaki shrine came into clear view across the skyline. "We're almost there, and it's more important to help Kiyone right at the moment."

-------------

"You know, Tenchi has quite a knack for bringing young ladies to the mountains."

As her charge carefully wrapped her robe around her body, tying the sash firmly at the waist, Washu cast her a smile, getting to her feet. "You look much better now, my dear...although you were very quick. Are you sure that you don't want me to look at your injuries?"

"Really, I'm all right. Just bruised and they'll heal on their own." The young girl shook her head, faint flickers of anxiety burning deep in her lilac eyes. Washu eyed her keenly, a thoughtful look coming over her own features as she surveyed Tenchi's latest waif and stray. For a moment there was silence between them, then the scientist laughed, reaching out to take the girl's hand in hers.

"Well, then let's go downstairs and be sociable." She said playfully. "You already know my daughter, I think, and you've met Lord Katsuhito at the door. That's us, pretty much...at least, for the time being."

"Why do you call him Lord Katsuhito?" Yume eyed her with curiosity, obediently following her petite companion down the stairs. "Is he a lord? I know nothing about Tenchi's family, really. We only met recently - did he tell you how we did?"

"It's an old joke between old friends, nothing more." Washu said simply, although she shot the girl a sidelong glance at the question. "And yes, I heard about events in Osaka. Fortunately nobody was badly hurt as a result of the incident...although if you ask me it was bound to happen sooner or later."

"Really?" Yume's eyes became big with surprise as she absorbed this. "Why so?"

"Well, there are a lot of hotheaded young men out there in the galaxy, and well, it's tempting to target a planet that can't really defend itself." Washu said airily, shrugging her shoulders. "Of course, Ryoko has a nose for trouble, so it's little surprise she got herself wound up in it. Young people, that's all...playing the fool on a big scale. I doubt we'll see whoever he was again. Obviously he's not a local."

Yume's brow creased in confusion.

"But nor are you, and you're still here." She pointed out. Then, as Washu fixed her with an enquiring glance, she dropped her gaze, seemingly uncomfortable.

"I'm sorry, Washu-san. I didn't mean any disrespect." She said hurriedly. "But I know that Ryoko doesn't come from the Earth, so I assumed..."

"That I didn't, either?" Washu raised an eyebrow. "There's no secret in it. But my impetuous daughter gets her gifts from her late father, I assure you. I'm a scientist. Magic is beyond my scope."

"Are there many planets with life on them, Washu-san?" Yume asked curiously, as they reached the main lounge. Washu nodded, indicating for her companion to take a seat.

"Yes, but they're mostly not hostile." She agreed. "And few of them want to bother with a rock like the Earth. I'm here because it's a peaceful refuge for me to carry out my experiments undisturbed. And of course, Ryoko is here because of Tenchi. I wouldn't say that there's been an invasion just yet."

She smiled, observing the girl's reaction closely as she settled herself on the couch. "But all of this must be a bit alarming for you...especially in light of what happened to your Dad."

"Yes." A strange look crossed Yume's face, and to Washu's mind it looked very much like she had forgotten her supposed grief for the briefest of instants. "Yes, it is. I...really don't know what I will do now."

"I have no doubt that Tenchi will let you stay here." Washu said comfortably. "But you will probably have to pull your weight, since Ryoko's always been allergic to chores and I'm afraid I'm often too wrapped up in this project or that to be much use around the house."

"I'll do whatever I can to help Tenchi out." This time Yume's emotion was more natural, and Washu noted it with interest, offering the girl a smile. "He's been very kind to me."

"That's Tenchi for you." Washu shrugged. "He's been that way as long as I've known him, and I doubt he'll change much with time."

"Can I ask...how did you meet him?" Yume looked curious, and Washu laughed.

"We met in the cave near his shrine." She said vaguely. "You could call it a chance encounter."

"I see." Yume's brow furrowed. "I think."

"Washu-chan?" Tenchi's voice interrupted their discussion at that moment, and Washu glanced up, seeing the young man in the doorway. One glance at his expression and she was on her feet in a minute, her observation of Yume forgotten.

"What's up?" She asked softly. "Did Ryoko blow something up again?"

"No...no. It's Yagami." Tenchi shook his head. "Ryo Ohki took a distress signal and she and Ryoko have gone up to see what's the matter. Ryoko thinks the ship has some kind of problem and so can't dock here - but she seems to think it's serious. She said that I should get you, in case it's Kiyone with an urgent message about...well, you know what I mean."

He faltered, and Washu cast Yume a glance, observing with some interest how intently she was following the conversation.

"What's a Yagami?" the girl asked finally.

"Yagami is a spaceship." Washu said levelly. "Please excuse me, Yume-san."

"Of course." Yume nodded her head. "Thank you for your help."

Washu bowed her head in acknowledgement, then followed Tenchi out of the house, heading across the grass to where Ryo Ohki was just touching down to the ground.

"I hope nobody saw her careening about the place like that." Washu muttered, as the ship was lit up in a red glow and her passengers were beamed down onto the ground. "I've told her about...what on earth? _Kiyone_?" As through the glare she began to make out the stricken detective in Ryoko's arms.

Ryoko stepped forward solemnly, her expression unreadable as she approached her mother.

"I'm going to take her to your lab. I'll see you there." She said quietly. Then, with a flicker, she was gone, and Washu turned her attention to Mihoshi, cold dread settling inside her as she digested what had happened.

"Mihoshi, are you all right?" She asked gently, as behind them, Ryo Ohki shimmered and shifted her form back to that of the cabbit. Mihoshi met the scientist's concerned gaze with tearful blue eyes, shaking her head.

"She wanted me to bring her here." She said chokily. "But something hurt her, Washu...something horrible and I don't know what. I thought she was going to die and now Yagami won't start and she's going to be mad at me and what am I going to do without Kiyone?"

"Shh...shh." Tenchi put a comforting arm around the distraught police officer, hugging her tightly. "You did the best thing you could do, bringing her somewhere safe. Nobody is going to be angry with you, Mihoshi. And I'm sure Washu can fix whatever it is that's wrong with her. Remember, she saved my Grandfather's life after Kagato attacked him. You did the right thing."

He glanced at Washu, who's expression had become grim.

"Shall I take her inside, and try and calm her down?" He asked. "I could make her some hot tea...it won't be as good as Sasami's, but I can try."

"Tea is probably good, but no. I want Mihoshi to come with me to the lab." Washu shook her head, holding out a hand to the police officer who took it hesitantly. "Besides, I think she'd rather be with Kiyone, wouldn't you, Mihoshi?"

"Yes please." Mihoshi sniffled, her composure gone now that the pressure was off her. "I knew you'd help, Washu - but I was so frightened."

"Well, let's see what we can do to help her." Washu said decidedly. She cast Tenchi a glance.

"You might as well play nursemaid to Yume." She added. "But Tenchi?" As he made to leave them.

"Yes?" Tenchi paused, turning back towards her quizzically.

"Be careful, Tenchi." Washu spoke seriously. "People aren't always everything they seem. Be careful what you tell her - and don't mention your links with Jurai, at least not yet."

"Washu?" Tenchi frowned. "Are you telling me _you_ think Yume's up to something too?"

"I'm telling you to guard your tongue until we all know more." Washu shook her head. "Caution never hurt anyone, Tenchi. Remember that."

With that she gave him a wink, then led the still sobbing Mihoshi into the house, pulling open the door of the store cupboard and guiding her inside. Ryoko was already there, with Kiyone laid out carefully on one of Washu's work tables, an old blanket sufficing as a pillow.

"You took your time." The pirate said impatiently. "Kiyone's hurt pretty badly. I thought you'd come right away."

"I came as soon as I could. Walking takes longer than teleporting." Washu said lightly. "And besides, I had to send Tenchi off to watch over our newest recruit."

"Oh, that makes me feel a lot better." Ryoko grimaced. "Washu, you know how I feel about that girl..."

"Yes, and you may well be right." Washu nodded her head. "So I told him to keep an eye on her and be careful what he says. I'd rather she was with him than right here at the moment. Now if you wouldn't mind, Ryoko, I need to examine Kiyone without your bleating in my ear. Mihoshi, come take a seat. What you can tell me is important, and might help Kiyone recover more quickly...so I want you to try and remember everything."

She glanced up, eying her daughter's disgruntled look with a questioning one.

"Well? Are you still here, Ryoko-chan?"

"All right, I'm going." Ryoko glared at her mother indignantly. "But Kiyone is my friend too, you know. I don't like to see her hurt any more than you do!"

With that she faded out of the room, and Washu sighed, turning her attention back to the still form on the table before her.

"If we're going to make her comfortable, we're going to have to think more carefully about some kind of bedding." She said absently. "She's very pale. Mihoshi, you said she wanted you to bring her here. Did she happen to tell you why?"

"No. She was having trouble speaking..like she couldn't breathe right." Mihoshi said tearfully. "She didn't even seem to really see me at first. It was like she was...was hypnotised or...or something weird had happened to her, but I don't know what."

"And when she did recognise you, what then?"

"She said she'd been attacked, but she didn't seem able to tell me who by." Mihoshi creased up her brow in intense concentration. "I'm sorry, Washu. I don't remember anything else."

"Well, I suppose it's not important at the moment anyway." Gently Washu loosened Kiyone's uniform, pushing back the folds of her jacket. "Her breathing does sound hoarse and laboured, but I can't see any marks on her clothing that would suggest she took any kind of injury. Certainly not by any weapon I know, that's for sure. You didn't see anyone with her, when you arrived? Noone leaving in a hurry?"

"No." Mihoshi shook her head. "I thought I heard voices, but maybe she was talking to someone on the radio because there was noone in the drive room with her, Washu. And noone else would have been. Just me and I was late back from the mess hall again."

She looked troubled.

"Is this my fault? If I'd been on time, would Kiyone be safe now?"

"Mihoshi, put your mind at rest on that score." Washu shook her head. "Your quick thinking has more likely saved Kiyone's life, not hurt it any. And whoever did attack Kiyone, they meant business and would have struck anyway. I have a bad feeling that she got too close to something - and it's my fault, not yours that this happened."

"Ryoko said she was spying for you." Mihoshi remembered. "What was she spying on, Washu?"

"One of your fellow officers attacked planet Earth a few nights ago, and I wanted to discover why." Washu said grimly. "He came looking for Tenchi and obviously that's got to be more than coincidence. Last time I spoke to Kiyone, she told me that she was pretty sure he was involved in something bigger than just a random or mistaken raid. She even mentioned dark magic. Looking at her right now, I think she might have been right. No weapon caused this, Mihoshi - but certain types of magic could have."

"Can you help her?" Mihoshi eyed the scientist anxiously. Washu nodded.

"I think so." She agreed, touching Kiyone's cheek for a moment as she considered. "You must have disturbed whoever it was that did this. They didn't finish the job. I think Kiyone will survive - she's strong and fit and those things go in her favour. Yes, Mihoshi. I think I can help her."

She reached across to her main computer, typing in a few digits as a green glow shot up all around the injured woman.

"The field will protect her and help her to heal." She explained to the bewildered detective. "The rest will be down to Kiyone's own body - but I'll keep close tabs on her all the same."

"Thank you." Mihoshi flung her arms around her companion. "I was so worried, but I feel better now you've said that."

"There's nothing else you can tell me about what she said? Nothing at all?" Washu eyed the detective keenly. "Think for me, Mihoshi. It might be important, even if it doesn't seem that way to you. Anything at all."

"There was one thing." Mihoshi looked uncharacteristically thoughtful. "But I didn't really know what it meant, to be honest. I thought it was just a nonsense word, because she was feeling so out of it. I didn't take a lot of notice."

"Can you remember what it was?" Washu pressed. Mihoshi shrugged.

"Gee, it could've been anything." She admitted. "It started with a T...or was it a K? Oh, I'm not sure. It might have been a short word...or was it a long one?"

"Mihoshi, focus!" Washu interrupted, holding up her hands. "Whatever it was might have been gibberish, but it might not have been. Kiyone may have told you something that could help track down the one who hurt her. Don't you want to make sure they don't get to try again?"

Mihoshi paled, and inwardly the scientist berated herself for having been so blunt. She sighed.

"I'm sorry." She said. "Kiyone is safe here. But even if that's true, Mihoshi, if you can remember..."

"I'm trying." Mihoshi bit her lip. "It was a funny, weird little word. I never heard it before, so I don't know why she said it. And hey, I might have misheard her. She might not have said it at all."

"Can you try and tell me what it was? Or what you thought it was?" Washu asked. Mihoshi frowned, and for a moment there was silence. Then the Detective's blue eyes opened wide with triumph.

"I've got it!" She exclaimed. "_Tokimi_!"


	11. Chapter 11

**Chapter 11**

The headaches were getting worse.

Seiryo stared at his reflection in the mirror, scowling at the drawn face that stared back at him. He had not slept properly since he had returned to the Galaxy Police, and he knew that it was not just Suki who had observed it. Most people had put it down to the death of his father, and had tactfully not asked too many questions, but as the days wore on, more and more of what was going on around him began to seem like some kind of unreal dream.

If he was honest, he knew that the magic instilled in him by his new and sinister commander was the reasoning behind it. His body had never been built for magic, he told himself bitterly, and now that it possessed it, he had moments when it surged energy through him and other times when he felt too tired to even curl up and sleep. For one who had always been in such serene control of his emotions, he was unsettled by the change it had wrought in him. And yet he knew too that he would not let it go. Tokimi's magic had given him strength and drive beyond anything he had ever experienced and he knew that finally he was more than just a hard working agent of high status birth. He was equal to the Royal Line of Jurai, and could match them blow for blow.

If only he knew better how to master it inside of him.

He glowered at the Agent in the mirror once more, splashing water across the reflection as he turned his back on it, returning to his desk and the pile of work that was slowly accumulating around him. Many of the cases he had already delegated to lesser officers, using his connections within Headquarters to pass off his responsibilities without raising too many eyebrows. He knew from past experience that there were many agents and detectives willing to go the extra mile to have a good word put in for them with the Supreme Commander by Seiryo Tennan. But one file still lay open on his desk, the printouts mocking him every time he glanced at it.

"Father's murder." he murmured, dropping down into his seat and touching the cover sheet with a frown. "This is proving more complicated than I imagined. Masaki has connections in high places and in order to plant suspicion on him, I have to bypass all of that support network. Tokimi might think it's an easy way of getting Tenchi Masaki into her clutches, but the Galaxy Police have always been in Jurai's back pocket. To make too many forays into this area too quickly would be suicidal for the whole organisation, but more importantly, for me and for my family. It's one thing to pin the blame on that jezebel Ryoko - but Tokimi has absolutely no use for her and her defective gene pool. So I have to go back to the drawing board and implicate Tenchi-dono in this without causing war on Jurai."

He sat back in his chair, ruefully musing over the fact that, in all his time with the Galaxy Police, he had never tried to falsify evidence before.

"I never had to. I'm good at this job and I get it done right." He muttered. "But a lot rests on this."

As he sat there, an image of Kiyone Makibi flitted into his head, and a shadow touched his eyes. He'd killed in the line of duty before, but never had he slain an innocent. In the heat of the moment, every instinct had strained to do it, to exert his power and strength over her feeble form and prove to her that he was not someone who could be stopped, no matter what she tried. But now, once the rush had faded, he felt cold and empty at the memory. Like the corpse he'd left behind on Yagami, he told himself humourlessly. After all, he mused, you could be dead to the world in more ways than one.

"You're pensive tonight, Seiryo-san."

Her voice startled him and he glanced up in surprise as a hazy form began to shimmer in front of him, becoming more and more substantial with every minute. "Why so sad? You do know that everything is going exactly as we'd planned."

"How so?" Seiryo raised an eyebrow. "You're no nearer to grabbing Tenchi Masaki, and now you've made me kill a good Detective to keep Suki's secret. What else are you going to make me do?"

"You didn't seem so reluctant to kill Detective Makibi when I told you she had overheard your chat." Tokimi reminded him, amusement on her face. "You may have followed my command, Seiryo, but the desire to do it was all your own. I told you you were ruthless. You should believe me - I know your true nature better than you do."

"Let's just say it's not how I usually handle things." Seiryo said bitterly. "A coward kills behind closed doors. I kill in a fair fight. It's different."

"Not really." Tokimi spread her hands. "Was it fair that she eavesdropped on a private conversation? She wrote her own warrant, Seiryo. You shouldn't have remorse for carrying out a necessary act. Besides, she was just one detective. The Galaxy Police have more, and now any potential communication with Washu is severed completely. You did get to her before she made contact, I presume?"

"How would I know?" Seiryo demanded. "I went as soon as you told me. What is it about this Washu that makes you afraid of her, Tokimi?"

"I'm not afraid of her!" Rage flared in Tokimi's eyes and Seiryo glanced anxiously at the door, half expecting someone to come and complain at the raised voices at any moment.

"Shut up!" He hissed. "Or you'll give us both away!"

"Don't make stupid assertions, then." Tokimi said angrily. "I don't fear Washu. I would just rather not involve her. That's all. There is nothing she can do to defeat me or interfere in my plans. She would just delay the whole process with her tiresome logic and her pathetic mind games. And I have no wish to meet her again after all this time. Better she is kept out of it completely. That suits me far more."

"Okay. Fine. Whatever." Seiryo dismissed her words with a careless gesture. "So what happens now? Has that idiot Clay managed to get the genetic samples you wanted?"

"His droid is proving slower than I expected." Tokimi admitted. "But I intend to have him contact her this evening and make sure she knows she's not taking a holiday on that blasted planet. Besides, none of that is your concern. I'm relying on you to find a premise to bring Tenchi Masaki here for questioning. And do it soon, Seiryo. As soon as I have the data from Clay I can go ahead with my final plan to snare Tsunami - so be aware."

"This whole thing is seeming crazier by the day." Seiryo muttered. "Every time I fail you say we've made progress. What are you trying to do? Protect my family or drive me to ruin and disgrace?"

"Neither one." Tokimi told him bluntly. "I'm trying to hunt down a goddess who is responsible for the death of my world. That's all. You are useful to me so I help and protect you...so long as you continue to be useful, I will continue to do so. Your trip to the Earth was not a failure - it brought Zero into their midst. You dealt with the threat of Kiyone Makibi and you will find a way to add Tenchi Masaki's name to the most wanted list."

"And when all this is over? What will you do then?" Seiryo eyed her in trepidation. Tokimi laughed softly.

"Who knows?" She asked lightly. "But think, Seiryo, if Tsunami is no longer there...who protects the Royal House of Jurai then? Those who rely on magic to defend themselves will suddenly become weak. Those who have honed their skills through combat will have the power and the edge. There will be a struggle...and you are best placed to come out victorious."

She touched him with a ghostly hand and he felt a prickle of electricity flicker up his spine.

"For you have my magic to fill the void." She whispered. "Jurai will look to you as the new royal blood, don't you see that? The Tennan Family will be more than restored to their original status. They will be the Gods among men that the current Emperor considers himself to be now."

Seiryo stared at her, feeling the surge of magic well up inside of him, rushing through his senses and awakening every ounce of ambition that lay dormant inside of him. He nodded his head, bringing his hands up to examine them.

"You're right." He realised. "The Tennan family has always suffered because we weren't fortunate enough to be born to Tsunami's elitist line. But with your magic, that could change. Tokimi, in the absence of a deity, perhaps Jurai would take you in her stead."

"And you in Azusa's, my Lord of Jurai?" Tokimi sounded amused. Light flickered in Seiryo's eyes as he considered this.

"Perhaps." He acknowledged at length. "And I could bring Takeru Imada down to the level he deserves at long last."

"Him and that ungrateful Crown Princess who rejected your suit, no doubt?" Tokimi laughed. "The opportunities are endless. Destroy Azusa, denounce Ayeka and her soft-hearted husband...maybe take the Princess Sasami as your wife and become Emperor of all Jurai. She may not have Jurai's power, but soon none of her relatives will, either. They do say she will be pretty as she grows - pretty enough to suit even the most ambitious of overlords, and a convenient match to bring you to power in the chaos that ensues! Don't you see how much I can do for you, Seiryo? I can control people's minds. Influence their thoughts. All those Galaxy Police officers that serve...think of the ones you took to the Earth. You have an army at your fingertips, and with my help, there are no limits on what you can do."

"No limits." Seiryo clenched his fists, nodding his head. "You're right. Without Tsunami, Jurai is powerless."

"Now you see the bigger picture." Tokimi looked pleased. "You help me to defeat my nemesis, Seiryo, and I will more than help you see to yours. Your army will serve my purpose first. Then they will be yours to command as you please...into a new future where the Tennan family are revered across all of Jurai."

Seiryo was silent for a moment, digesting this. Then he raised his gaze to hers, a strange look in his eyes.

"When you put it like that, the death of one detective seems a small price to pay." He admitted. "To keep Suki safe, to guarantee her a good match and to rule supreme over a world that seems determined to laugh in our faces. Yes, Tokimi, I see the sense in your words. Perhaps you do know me better than I thought."

"Count on it." Tokimi agreed, her tone teasing. "I always reward those who are loyal to me. Look at Clay. He should have died half a milennium ago, but I have sustained him beyond his natural life. He should be rotting in the Academy's imprisonment system, but I pulled him out before they could lay hands on him. Yes, he has benefitted greatly from my power and patronage. You see now what it is to treat with a goddess?"

Seiryo's eyes flickered with a strange fire and he nodded once more.

"Yes." He said softly. "I do. Whatever it takes, Tokimi - I won't fail."

---------------

"Tokimi?"

Washu echoed Mihoshi's words, eying the detective with a mixture of surprise and alarm. She grabbed her companion by the wrists, meeting her gaze with an urgent one of her own.

"Are you sure? Mihoshi, please, try to remember. This could be very important. Are you certain that Tokimi was the word that you heard Kiyone say?"

Mihoshi stared at her friend in confusion, nodding her head slowly as blond curls bobbed in all directions.

"Yes, that was it all right." She agreed. "I know it doesn't make much sense, but then I guess Kiyone wasn't feeling so good and she just, well, made a noise. I'm sorry it didn't help any, Washu. I mean, well, whatever blasted her must have confused her brain."

Washu bit her lip, watching as Mihoshi squeezed Kiyone's hand reassuringly.

"At least you can help her. I feel so much better knowing we're back here with you guys." 

"No." Washu shook her head. Mihoshi looked startled.

"No?" She echoed. "But Washu, you just said that Kiyone would be okay!"

"And I think she will be." Washu nodded. "But what I mean is that you can't stay here. It wouldn't be wise. Not at the moment - not with everything that's already happened."

"Not...stay here?" Mihoshi's blue eyes widened in alarm. "But Washu, you said to Tenchi that I'd rather be with Kiyone! And I would, I really would! I mean, she's my partner and we do everything together! She'd want me to be near her and I can help you nurse her. Really I can! I might be a little clumsy sometimes but you can count on me!"

"Oh, Mihoshi, I know I can." Washu sighed heavily, putting a gentle hand on Mihoshi's arm. "But listen. Someone attacked Kiyone aboard Yagami. That someone expects to have disposed of her. If you suddenly disappear, then whoever it is are going to realise you had something to do with getting her away from Headquarters. Yagami is also missing, after all. And I have put the both of you in enough danger, quite evidently. No, the best thing is for you to go back to Headquarters at once and try and pretend that you don't know where she is. Really, Mihoshi. It's the only thing I can see for you to do."

"Go back?" Mihoshi's eyes could not get any bigger. "But there's someone trying to kill people there!"

"I know, and they must not suspect you're involved in whatever they think Kiyone was doing." Washu cast a regretful glance down at the stricken detective, every hoarse breath the woman drew nagging at her conscience. "This is the best thing you can do for her. Yagami is not your ship, after all."

"But you said that I probably disturbed them." Mihoshi's brows knitted in consternation. "What if they already know I know something?"

"Then you get in touch with me and I'll send Ryoko to get you out of there." Washu said grimly. "Ryo Ohki moves at speed, and you're the only Galaxy Police officer who's ever come close to catching her."

Her tone softened.

"Mihoshi, I already feel guilty about Kiyone being hurt." She murmured. "I won't have it happen twice over with you, too."

"Do you want me to spy, like Kiyone was?" Mihoshi asked curiously. "I mean, I could...I'm sure I could find out whatever it was Kiyone was looking into."

"No." Washu shook her head. "No, whatever it was almost got her killed, and I won't put you in that kind of danger. Mihoshi, you must go back to the Galaxy Police and pretend like everything is all right. I know it's hard, and I know you're worried about Kiyone. But if I know you're safe and out of this, I can focus much more easily on Kiyone's health. The Earth is not a safe haven at the moment, you have to know that. There has already been one raid, and with all the bits and pieces I'm starting to put together, I think that Headquarters is probably a safer place for you to be."

Mihoshi sighed.

"I want to help Kiyone." She said at length, looking defeated. Washu smiled sadly.

"By going back, you will be." She said simply.

"All right." Mihoshi glanced at her hands. "But what about Yagami? I blew out its engine. I can't fly it back broken - the thing won't move."

"I'll find a way to transport you back." Washu promised. "I've done a lot of inter-dimensional development since I began moving my lab around space, and I'm sure I can find a short-cut through a wormhole that would get you back to Headquarters without any trouble. But you must promise me to say nothing to anyone about Kiyone or where she is, all right? And under no circumstances repeat that word you told me."

"Which word?" Mihoshi's brow furrowed. 

"Tokimi."

"Oh. That one." Mihoshi looked sheepish. "I'd forgotten it already."

"Well, forget it again." Washu advised grimly.

"Is it a rude word?"

"Not exactly, but saying it could get you into trouble." Washu said vaguely. "Just promise me you won't repeat it to anyone...no matter who they say they are or what they ask you."

"I promise." Mihoshi nodded her head, lifting her hand in a salute. "I won't tell a soul."

"Good girl." Washu looked relieved. "Then that's all we can do here. Kiyone is stable - she needs to rest and I'll know if there's any change in her condition through a signal from the computer system. Come to the lounge, Mihoshi, and get something to drink. You've had a long and stressful flight and if I'm going to send you back this evening, well, I want you to be calm and rested before I do. You can leave Yagami where it is. I'll worry about cloaking the ship if it becomes necessary that we do so."

"I trust you, Washu." Mihoshi dimpled. "And so does Kiyone. Only...if you can fix her ship? I mean, she likes it a lot and, well...she doesn't like it when I hit all the wrong buttons."

"I promise that if I have a chance, I'll try my best." Washu assured her, linking her arm in that of the detective's with a slight smile. "Although I doubt she'd be too mad at you, considering the reason why you did it in the first place!"


	12. Chapter 12

**Chapter 12**

"_Zero!_"

In the darkness of the Masaki home, Zero sat bolt upright, her lilac eyes opening wide in surprise and alarm as Dr Clay's voice rang through her databanks.

"_Zero, I await your report! What have you to tell me?_"

"Dr Clay." Zero frowned, pushing back the blanket that had covered her slim form and carefully stepping out of bed, getting to her feet and moving to the window. The room was small - barely more than a boxroom - but it had been more space than she had ever been given to herself before, and even though she knew it was all part of an elaborate hoax, she had hoped that maybe life would continue this way for days and weeks to come, while Tenchi believed she was Yume, and everyone in the mountains treated her so well.

In a matter of words, Dr Clay had managed to shatter those hopes into bare, cold reality and she stifled an involuntary shiver, gazing up at the stars as she contemplated what she could tell him.

"_Do you have the samples Tokimi requires_?" Clay seemed to find the silence too long, for his voice was rich with impatience. "_Zero, you have never failed me yet. Don't make this your first time_."

"I have not failed you, Dr Clay." Zero said stiffly. "The woman known as Washu has her laboratory sealed here on the Planet Earth. I have learnt that she is fond of experimenting, and that she has taken genetic samples from Tenchi Masaki Jurai as well as from her daughter, Ryoko Hakubi. I have not been able to acquire the samples because Washu-san has only just retired to bed. But I am ready to retrieve them now. I will go at once."

"_Good girl._" Clay's voice seemed to relax at this. "_You are right to exercise caution around that viper Professor Hakubi. She is not to be trusted under any circumstances, Zero. Do not let her discover your true errand on the Earth._"

"I will not be discovered." Zero said frankly. "My duplications are perfect. You made me to be that way."

"_Yes, I did, but Washu has ways and means..._" Clay responded. "_She always did know too much. Just take care, Zero. You are only a machine and you can't possibly hope to comprehend how a woman like Washu operates. Find the samples and then I can withdraw you from that worthless rock. Tokimi will reward me well for our work here, and you can return to my laboratory safely_."

"Yes, Dr Clay." Zero bit her lip.

"_Zero_?" Clay's tone became suspicious "_Are you becoming fond of that world_?"

"No, Doctor." Zero replied hurriedly. "I am aware of my mission and will obey you."

"_See that you do._" Clay's tone held a veiled threat. "_This is too important to be messed up by a careless droid!_"

Abruptly their communication was broken, and Zero leant up against the window glass, emotions welling up through her sensors and across her memorybanks as she replayed the conversation word for word in her head.

"Dr Clay doesn't think of me as anything more than his creation. His slave." She whispered. "But what am I, really? I never minded such things before. But being here...knowing Tenchi...I don't understand what I've become. So many things seem different to me now. Why do I want so much to stay here and be a part of this world? Tokimi is dangerous and Clay is my master. I must obey him - I am programmed to obey him! But how can I do so, when it means harming someone who's been nothing but kind to me from the start?"

She sighed, turning away from the window and making her way slowly out of the tiny bedroom, heading down the stairs to the store-cupboard that she knew led to Washu's extensive interdimensional laboratory. The door was not locked, and Zero marvelled at the careless arrogance of the woman Clay so feared.

"Maybe she's not as smart as he thinks she is." She murmured with a sigh. "But at least it makes it easier to do what I must do."

She pulled open the door, stepping carefully into the dark expanse beyond and adjusting her vision to compensate for the dim, eerie glow that lit the corners of the lab. Computers flickered occasionally from their corners, and the laboratory seemed to spread for miles beyond the naked eye.

Zero picked her way carefully between two units towards the centre of the laboratory, where Washu's chair hovered, abandoned. Not far away, she knew, the injured detective that she had not been officially told about lay sleeping, and as she drew closer she could hear the hoarse, even breathing of the woman she had not yet met. Covert eavesdropping at the door of Washu's laboratory at various points during the evening had told her enough to realise that the detective's injury was no coincidence, and somehow, knowing that Tokimi was involved made her even more apprehensive about her mission.

"But I did hear Washu mention samples too, when she was talking about Tenchi-kun." She murmured. "And that means that somewhere in here is the data I seek. Whether I like it or not, I am programmed to obey...and I do not know if I can defy Dr Clay."

"Good evening, Yume."

Suddenly the laboratory became illuminated from all sides and Zero swung around in shock and dismay, meeting the calm green gaze of the scientist watching her. Washu offered her a smile, folding her arms across her chest as she registered her companion's confusion.

"I wondered how long it would take for you to come." She added. "I've been waiting quite a while."

"I...I was looking for a glass of water." Zero thought quickly, trying to quell the panic signals that threatened to override her processors. "What is this place?"

"What the hell are you doing down here? I knew you were up to something, you little..._Washu_?" Before Washu could answer, Ryoko burst into the lab, stopping dead as she registered her mother's presence. "Is everyone up tonight? What's going on...did you arrange for her to come down here without telling me?"

"I...I think I should go back to bed." Zero took a step backwards, offering a faint smile as she glanced from mother to daughter. "I obviously have no idea what this is about, but I...I just want a drink."

"I'm sorry, my dear. That just won't do."

Washu flicked her hand across a switch and the door disappeared into the ether, leaving Zero staring at the space where it had been with a mixture of confusion and anxiety. Ryoko stepped cautiously forward, eying the intruder warily as she tried to gauge what was going on.

"What brings you to my lab so late, little Ryoko?" Washu sent her daughter a playful smile. "Visiting hours are within daylight, if you don't mind. Kiyone needs her rest."

"I followed _her _down here." Ryoko said darkly, jerking her head in Zero's direction. "I keep telling you, she's up to something and she has been since the moment she came here."

"I don't know what you're talking about!" Zero affected a shocked expression, pretending to look frightened. "I've done nothing to you! I thought you were on our side - that you wanted to help people on Earth!"

"I do." Ryoko said grimly. "I'm just not convinced you're one of them."

"That's crazy!" Zero opened her eyes wide. "What else would I be?"

"I don't know." Ryoko narrowed her gaze. "But you know what? I do know this. I've been thinking about it very hard and I know exactly what it is that bothered me about you. I got dragged to some official interrogation cell after you came to Tenchi's apartment in Osaka, and at the time I didn't figure out what the connection was. But the cop who stopped me...the one they said gave the tip. He had the same eyes as you...your father? Too convenient not to be true. And how did he know my last name was Hakubi? I never told you that and nor did Tenchi. But he knew it...and he came for me very soon after we'd told you about the Galaxy Police."

"You're insane." Zero snapped angrily. "I tried to defend you to those people and now you think I betrayed you? Why would I do that? Because of you, a lot of people's lives were saved."

"But that wasn't the point, was it!" Ryoko shot back. "The point was to make Earth suffer as much as possible for harbouring Tenchi and I in their midst!"

"Enough!" At that moment, Washu put up her hands, glancing from one to the other as she considered how best to proceed. Ryoko sent her mother a sullen look, and Zero schooled her features into a look of indignation.

"I want to go back to bed." She said frankly. "I don't know what's going on here, but I don't like it and I don't want to be involved. Tenchi must be mad to be tied up with a girl like you...you're completely unbalanced, and if he had any clue how obsessive you were, he'd..."

"I said _enough_!"

This time there was something in Washu's tone that cowed Zero to silence, and the scientist nodded her head, moving to stand between them. She glanced at her daughter long and hard for a moment, then turned her attention to Zero, tilting her head on one side as she considered what best to do.

"Ryoko, there's nothing to be gained by shouting at her." She said at length.

"But she was coming down here to interfere in your work! Maybe even to hurt Kiyone - I wouldn't be surprised!" Ryoko protested.

"I had nothing to do with Detective Makibi's injuries!" Zero exclaimed.

"How do you know her name is Makibi? You've never met her before - and you claim not to know anything about the Galaxy Police!" Ryoko was on her in a flash, and Zero berated herself inwardly for her lack of concentration.

"I heard you talking." She said quietly. "You didn't want me to know, but I'm not deaf."

"All right." Washu sighed. "Let's not start that again."

She stepped forward, putting a hand on Zero's arm and meeting her gaze with unflinchng green eyes.

"It's time we were all a little more honest with one another than we have been, don't you think?" She asked softly. Zero stared at her, uncertainty growing inside of her, and Washu nodded.

"Zero, I presume?" she murmured. Zero's eyes opened wide with shock.

"_What_?"

"I worked for a long time with your Dr Clay, you know." Washu turned on her heel, moving away from the droid and back towards her main computer system. "Many, many years ago. He was in my department for many years - although he always resented that I had the better pitch than he did...and that generally his tenure was beneath mine in the Academy hierarchy."

"Washu, what are you talking about?" Ryoko creased her brow in confusion, and Washu offered her a benign smile. She raised a hand, gesturing carelessly at the horrified droid.

"Clay's last patented project for the Science Academy before he was relieved of his duties." She said. "Do you remember me telling you about Ryo Ohki, and what happened to my lab and my research notes after I was exiled?"

Ryoko's eyes narrowed, and energy flickered from her fingertips.

"So _you're_ the one who caused all those cabbits to starve to death." She said angrily. "You're some kind of twisted robot - and you try and convince Tenchi that you're human! Well, you might have fooled him, but you haven't fooled me! I'll blast you into your component pieces, you twisted lump of junk!"

A bolt of amber energy came searing across the lab towards her, and Zero flung up a forcefield around herself without thinking about it, glaring at the pirate from behind it's translucent gleam.

"And you're just as much of a savage as your police records suggest." She said bitterly. "What Tenchi sees in an animal like you I don't know."

She turned, eying Washu doubtfully.

"How did you know who I was?" She asked hesitantly. "I mean...my duplications are perfect. I...I was built to be perfect."

"You may have been." Washu spread her hands. "But my people possess an ancient, long dead gift. We see the true nature of those people who stand before us. No matter how much you tried to convince me that you were Yume, I knew that you were not all you claimed to be the moment Tenchi introduced us. And that you weren't who you said you were made me make the connection between your facade and what I learnt from the Science Academy about Clay's plagiaristic foray into organic research. I suppose Ryoko must have inherited some elements of it from me...I certainly have no other way of explaining why she felt so strongly about you being here."

She glanced at Ryoko, shaking her head.

"Drop your hands, Ryoko-chan." She said softly. "Violence isn't going to help."

Zero eyes the scientist for a moment, a cold feeling welling up inside of her as she digested Washu's words.

"But I thought the only one who could do that was..." She faltered, unwilling to say the name, and Washu raised an eyebrow.

"Yes?" She asked. Zero shook her head.

"Nothing." She said, as determination flared through her. She raised her hands, glimmers of energy surrounding the edges of her form as she lifted herself bodily off the laboratory floor. "I have my orders and I must carry them out. You know too much about me and I must eliminate you. Nothing can stand in my way...I must obey the Doctor."

"Not if I get you first." Ryoko's eyes narrowed as she put a forcefield between her and the angry droid. "You're not fighting in the little league now. You said you had access to my police files - in which case you'll know that it doesn't take much for me to melt machines like you."

"And I've been dying to destroy you ever since I met you." Zero snapped back, as Washu stepped back to watch with interest. "You get in my way, space pirate."

"Ryoko? _Yume_? What's all the noise down here?"

Before Ryoko could react, the door flickered and materialised in the middle of the lab once more, swinging open to reveal a confused and half asleep Tenchi, his night robe wrapped around his body and a bewildered look on his face which soon turned to shock as he registered the scene he had walked in on. "Washu? What's happening here? What's going on!"

"_Tenchi_?" Horror flooded Zero's senses and she dropped heavily to the ground, the glimmer fading as her hand flew to her mouth. "Oh no...no...it's not what...I mean...I..."

"I told you that girl was a fake." Ryoko said darkly, electricity still flickering from her fingers as the door once more vanished into nothing. "Get out of the way, Tenchi. One blast and she'll not bother us any more."

"Ryoko!" Tenchi exclaimed. "What are you saying?"

"She's nothing but a damn robot, Tenchi!" Ryoko responded frankly. "Bits of scrap metal that took Ryo Ohki's place in Washu's lab and meant she and her kind were all left to starve!"

"No, Ryoko." Washu intervened at that moment, shaking her head. "Not quite just a robot. You underestimate the technology...would you consider Ryo Ohki to be just a machine?"

"No, but Ryo Ohki has a soul." Ryoko lowered her hands slowly, as Tenchi came to her side, and Zero felt a pang of anguish rocket through her as he put a gentle arm around the pirate's shoulders.

"So, I think you'll find, does Zero." Washu replied softly, and Zero fought back the impulse to cry, angry with her humanoid form for allowing her such weaknesses in front of those she knew were her enemies. The scientist stepped forward, taking Zero's left hand in hers and examining it carefully, a smile touching her lips as she did so. "Besides, it takes something extra-ordinary to break through my security systems and infiltrate my laboratory. This is sophisticated technology, Ryoko - not scrap metal."

"Someone explain to me what's going on?" Tenchi demanded plaintively. "Who's Zero? Where's Yume? And why is everyone having a free for all in Washu's lab at this time of night?"

"Yume doesn't exist." Washu gently released her grip, glancing up at the droid and for a moment Zero thought she saw compassion in the woman's eyes. Then, in an instant, it was gone, and she was left wondering if she had imagined it being there at all. "Zero is my shape-shifter - the one who broke into my laboratory and infiltrated my security system to access top secret files. Yume is just another of her facades...but she was never real. As Ryoko suspected, she was sent to spy on you - probably by Dr Clay, since he's the one who holds her patenting."

"I see." Zero's heart ached at the wary look Tenchi sent her. "And what does Dr Clay want with me, anyway? This is all connected somehow with that attack on Osaka, isn't it?"

"Without a doubt." Washu agreed. "Unfortunately for Clay, I have a knack for spotting technology in human form - and for reading people's true intentions. Besides, most of the advances Clay used to build Zero come right out of my own work. I was slow...if I had stopped and examined the plans better when I was at the Academy, I would have realised sooner how it was Clay managed to gain entry to my laboratory and maybe I would have been able to move our situation further along. Sparing Kiyone, perhaps."

She frowned, glancing at Zero.

"As it is, I didn't make the connection until she arrived here." She added. "I knew as soon as I saw her that there was something going on - but I thought that, if I kept an eye on her, I might learn something."

At this, the last of Zero's composure crumbled and broke and she sank to the ground, burying her head in her arms as the unfamiliar sensation of crying dominated her senses.

"I'm so sorry." She whispered at length, raising tearful lilac eyes to meet Tenchi's troubled ones. "I didn't want to hurt you, Tenchi Masaki. You've been kind to me. But I am programmed...I am programmed..."

She faltered.

"I didn't want to do it, not once I met you." She added. "But I'm afraid of what will happen to me if I disobey his orders."

For a moment there was silence. Then, slowly, Tenchi approached her, reaching down to pull her to her feet.

"So your name is Zero?" He asked softly. Zero nodded.

"I didn't know robots could cry." Tenchi glanced at Washu in confusion, and Washu smiled.

"Ryo Ohki can cry." She reminded him. "Zero works on the same premise. She's not entirely machine, Tenchi. Part of her circuitry is organic, just as Ryo Ohki's is. In both cases it enables them to change form at will - although Ryo Ohki's was locked to only two forms. Zero, I suspect, has many many more options at her disposal, since the focus of her design was to imitate and impersonate."

"Is that true?" Tenchi turned his gaze back to the distressed droid, who nodded her head.

"I'm sorry." She repeated again. "I haven't told them anything since I've been here, I swear. I just wanted to stay with you and be Yume and...and not have to worry about anything else. You're all so happy here and I wanted to belong. You don't treat me like a machine...not like Clay does."

"Do you think we believe your pathetic little sob-story?" Ryoko demanded.

"Hush, Ryoko." Washu shook her head. "I believe her."

She smiled.

"Just as he broke through your defences, I believe Tenchi has broken through Zero's in his usual, unassuming way." She added, eying Zero keenly.

"You mean she really _is_ in love with him?" Ryoko stared. Washu nodded her head.

"I believe she is, in a manner of speaking." She agreed. "Having organic componants means that she is capable of human - or humanlike - raw emotion. It's what enables her to be so convincing when she takes on human form. But in this case, her circuitry has become confused. Instead of locking those feelings away and using them only on a superficial level, something has broken down the divide between them. Zero has developed real feelings...and those feelings have centred on Tenchi, because he's the one who has shown her the most kindness since she came to the Earth."

"You know a lot about me." Zero eyed the scientist hopelessly. "Will you now destroy me...now you know what I am?"

"On the contrary, I'm actually curious to know more." Washu pursed her lips. "You said yourself that you didn't want to disobey Dr Clay because you feared him. But Clay is not such a scientist to be able to generate all these sophisticated emotions on his own. Even with my notes he'd have floundered - he's not the genius he thinks he is and he never has been. There's something more and I'd like to know what it is."

"I never used to fear anyone." Zero said quietly. "Or care what happened to them when I completed my mission. But Tokimi..."

She faltered, shaking her head, and Ryoko frowned.

"Tokimi?" She repeated. "There's a name I haven't heard before."

"Ryoko, Tenchi, I'd like it if you left Zero to my care for the time being." Washu said gravely, glancing at the droid, then back at the confused couple that stood before her. "It's late and I don't want further violence or disturbance. I have a lot of things to ask her, and I'd rather neither of you were here to colour her feelings on any subject. She obviously feels very strongly where both of you are concerned, and that won't get me anywhere."

"What if she attacks you?" Ryoko demanded. Washu smiled.

"I can take care of myself against one renegade droid." She said simply. "Go to bed, both of you."

She flicked her switch and the door shimmered back into view. "Go on. I am quite safe and so, I promise you, is Kiyone."

With a backward glance, Tenchi and Ryoko reluctantly left the laboratory, and the door vanished behind them, leaving Zero once more alone with her scientific companion. She eyed Washu nervously, and for a moment there was silence between them as Washu glanced her prey up and down. Then she laughed, stretching her hands over her head and dropping down into her hovering chair.

"Well, now we can talk." She said airily. "Can't we?"

"What are you going to do with me, Washu-san?" Zero took a hesitant step forward, then stopped, confused.

"We're going to talk, like I told Tenchi and Ryoko." Washu beckoned for the droid to join her and, not without misgivings, Zero did so, stopping mere feet from the chair and eying her companion in trepidation.

"Will you hurt me?"

"I have no intention of hurting you, no." Washu dropped her light tone, eying the droid seriously. "But I do want the truth from you, Zero. I know you were sent here by Clay to spy on Tenchi, and probably to retrieve something else from my laboratory. What would that have been?"

Zero dropped her gaze, unwilling to answer, and Washu sighed.

"You have no reason to be loyal to Clay." She reminded her. "He did not develop your technology. I did. All of the intricate workings that make you who you are are down to my science, not his...no matter what he's programmed you to do. And you know your instructions have already been compromised by your emotional attachment to Tenchi. Will you trust me, Zero? I can help you."

"No, you can't." Zero whispered. "Even if what you say is true, I am connected to Clay through my thoughts. He can contact me at any moment and know what I am processing at that time. And then...there is something else. I fear it so much it paralyses every one of my circuits to remember...if I fail them, I will be terminated. And...I don't want to die."

"I see." Washu looked thoughtful. "And if I was to release your connection with Dr Clay? Eradicate it from your system completely? It wouldn't take more than a couple of seconds to find and remove the relevant chip from your data-banks. Would you trust me then, Zero? Because I have no wish to harm you. I just want to learn what you know...because a friend of mine is badly hurt and another friend is being pursued by forces I never imagined he'd have to face. I need to find out why and how."

Zero eyed her companion long and hard for a moment. Then she sighed, shimmering and blurring her form back to her original state.

"This is how I truly am." She murmured. "But you knew that anyway, didn't you?"

"Yes." Washu agreed. "But knowing your nature was more difficult than it normally is, Zero. Your loyalty to your programming conflicts with your new emotions. You're confused, aren't you? You don't understand how this has happened to you."

"No, I don't." Zero sighed, as the scientist glanced over her robot form, at last finding what she was looking for and carefully prying the chip free from it's sisters. "But I know when...nothing has been the same since."

"Since you met Tokimi?" Washu asked softly. Zero hesitated, then nodded her head, as Washu dropped the chip into a nearby chute that had materialised from nowhere, wiping her hands together as she did so. "Yes, I thought so. When you first came here I picked up energy emissions from you that correlated with anomalies I found in the Earth's atmosphere. Also at the Science Academy, when Dr Clay was broken out. I didn't suspect Tokimi - I was slow there again - but it's been so very long and I didn't realise the age of the magic involved. But I should have known. Only a being such as her could create such atmospheric disturbances. And even just by being in proximity to you, she has tainted your own signals."

"She called me the soulless one." Zero remembered. "Like you, she knew what I was even when I was disguised from her. But she did something to me - she said she opened my eyes. And she did...only now I don't know who I am any more. All these feelings are confusing and disorientating. I lose track of what I have to do because I'm focused on what I _want_ to do. I see the world so differently...and I'm afraid for the first time of being destroyed. I want to live...but I know that living means eventually dying. And so I fear dying...and a lot more things besides."

She hesitated, eying Washu carefully.

"How is it that you know Tokimi?" She asked softly. Washu smiled.

"It was a long time ago, and probably doesn't matter now anyway." She said simply. "What does is getting to the bottom of her plans for Tenchi and stopping them before they get a whole lot further."

She paused, then,

"Tell me, did you know anything about Kiyone's attack?"

"No, I promise that I didn't." Zero shook her head. "But..."

"But you think you know what happened to her, anyway?" Washu asked gently. Zero looked troubled, morphing her form back to that of Yume as she did so. She nodded.

"When I was on Jurai, I discovered things that allowed Tokimi to snare a Galaxy Police agent into her web." She said slowly. "Clay had me hack the Galaxy Police personnel files, so that Tokimi would have access to officers at will, and be able to bend them to her plans. That is how I know Detective Makibi's name."

"The Galaxy Police agent - Seiryo Tennan?" Washu asked. Zero nodded.

"Yes." She agreed.

"And his raid on the Earth?"

"A smokescreen." Zero looked pained. "To bring me into the picture and into Tenchi's trust."

"I see." Washu looked thoughtful. "But Tokimi does seek Tenchi, I am right about that?"

"Yes." Zero sighed. "Or rather, she seeks something he has or...or maybe is. I don't know which, that's the truth. But she believes he belongs to Tsunami. That because he used Light Hawk Wings against Kagato, he must be Tsunami's chosen one and she walks among men once more. Tokimi hates Tsunami...she wants to destroy her. And she thinks she can do so by learning about and then destroying Tenchi Masaki."

"Well, she always did jump to conclusions." Washu grimaced. "Zero, Tenchi isn't Tsunami any more than you or I are. Tokimi is way off base. Yes, he has the Light Hawk Wings, but if he was truly Tsunami, don't you think he would have produced ten? Not three. Besides, Tsunami already walks among us in human form. Tenchi is just another Juraian prince...only one with the highest level of Juraian magic. Tsunami trusts him with it because his nature is peaceful, and she knows he would never abuse it. That's all."

"Are you sure?" Zero looked uncertain. Washu nodded.

"I have met the real Tsunami." She said softly. "And I can promise you that Tenchi is not it."

"Then Tokimi has gone to a lot of trouble for nothing." Zero realised. She bit her lip. "And when she finds out, she will destroy Dr Clay and me both. After all, she works on Clay's information, and I am nothing more to her than an extension of his will."

A note of bitterness touched her tones at this moment and Washu smiled, resting a hand on her arm.

"Not any more. Not now I've removed him completely from your system." She responded. "Your overriding loyalty is no longer to him but to yourself, Zero - it's now up to you how you act and which side you choose to follow."

"Clay seems to think you're as dangerous as Tokimi if you're crossed." Zero looked thoughtful. "Are you?"

"Maybe I would have been, once. A long time ago." Washu looked rueful. "I could hurt you, if that's what you want to know. But I'm not interested in doing so."

She smiled, shrugging her shoulders.

"You have to decide which side you are on." She added. "And I'll know if you lie to me, so think carefully before you answer."

Zero bit her lip, emotion flickering in her pale lilac eyes as she considered her options. Then, at length, she sighed.

"I want to be with Tenchi." She whispered. "I don't know how to explain it, or even make what I feel logical, Miss Washu. But I know that being here with him has made me happy...and I've never been happy before. And...I want to be Yume. Because...since I became her and started all of this, it _has_ been like a dream. The first dream I ever had. I...I want to live this life and choose for myself for once, instead of having to do what other people tell me."

"I see." Washu eyed her keenly. "You know that Ryoko won't like knowing that?"

"I know. And I envy her." Zero said quietly. "Another emotion I never had before, but now it's always there whenever she's around. I know he loves her, Washu-san, and I know that now he knows who I really am, he'll never love me the way I love him. But I...I still need to be with him. I can't define it...but I know that it's what I really want."

"All right." Washu spread her hands. "In which case, I think it's time you told me everything you know about Tokimi, Clay, and Seiryo Tennan."


	13. Chapter 13

**Chapter 13**

"I don't know what to do, Tsunami."

Sasami settled herself on the bank of the winding stream, reaching an idle hand down to touch the running water as she did so. Her own face stared back at her, drawn and troubled, but as she watched, the image flickered and changed into one much older, and she sighed, shaking her head.

"You know without me even telling you, don't you?" She asked. "You know what Uncle said and that Father is cross with me for raising my voice to my Emperor. But I can't settle down and forget about this. You put these thoughts into my head...but now they trouble me constantly. What can I do? I can't leave here on my own. You know that I'd only get in the worst trouble of my life if I ran away again, and Ayeka won't even help me this time. I feel so helpless. I'm just a kid."

"_You're as much a child as you want to be, Sasami-chan_." Tsunami's voice seemed to echo from the water, but Sasami knew it was only in her mind. She sighed, stretching out on her stomach on the grass and resting her chin in her hands.

"Not to them I'm not." She said sadly. "Tsunami, what would you have me do?"

"_The Emperor fears what he doesn't understand._" Tsunami's expression became grave. "_And he is more troubled by this than you think, Sasami. He knows more of Tokimi than he has told you - but he doesn't believe she can still exist_."

"We both know she does, though." Sasami groaned. "And she's going to hurt Tenchi if we don't do something."

"_She is getting closer. I sense her force growing nearer to Tenchi-sama all of the time_." Tsunami responded.

"Will she kill him?"

"_If she can, yes._" Tsunami inclined her head. "_She believes he is me - my vessel among men...and seeks to destroy me at all costs_."

"Then it's me she wants, not Tenchi." Sasami frowned. "Tsunami, if she had me, would she leave Tenchi alone?"

"_That's not a sacrifice Jurai could let you make_."

"But you're strong enough to defeat her, right?"

"_I could be, if you and I were one_." Tsunami nodded. "_But you aren't ready for that, and I promised you that you wouldn't assimilate with me while you still had doubts about doing it. All that would achieve would be to create the you you saw in Nozomi's future world...the one trapped beneath my magic and my hopes for my planet. There is no solution in self-sacrifice_."

"But if I'm supposed to help protect the people of Jurai...Tenchi's one of them. At least he is to me." Sasami sighed, rubbing her temples. "And I want to help, Tsunami. I just don't know how I can."

"_Tenchi-sama is not alone_." Tsunami reminded her.

"Washu?" Sasami looked startled. "Is that who you mean? But what can she do, Tsunami? Even if she is who you suggested she was in my dream, she doesn't have the magic that Tokimi has. You said yourself that Tokimi's the one bonded to the planet. Not Washu. How can she protect Tenchi any more than Ryoko or any of the others?"

"_I don't believe she can - not without help_." Tsunami admitted. "_But she knows her enemy better than anyone else. Sasami, you must persevere with the Emperor, and if that fails, then you and I must take things into our own hands. Somehow, we must intervene in this. Tenchi-sama is more to me than just a friend. He has my blessing - he is one of my most trusted. I will not forsake him when he has never forsaken me_."

"Me either." Sasami said determinedly. "And if we have to go on our own, Tsunami, Kamidake will come with us. I know he will - he told me that he knew I was you for a while, he just didn't know it for sure until recently. I think he understands better than some of my own family do...what it means to be tied to you so closely."

"_Of course he does_." A slight smile touched Tsunami's lips. "_He slept in my care for many centuries, swearing his soul and existance to my service to be woken at a time when I needed him the most. He and Azaka both are also blessed by me. I trusted in them once, through the magic of the Royal House and their trees. Now I must do it more directly, and they are always there to answer my call, as ever they were._"

She looked mischievous.

"_I chose Azaka and Kamidake because I knew that they would prove friends and supporters for you, when you were finally brought into this world._" She said softly. "_I did not know if you would have mother or father to raise you, or if the world you would be born to would understand the gifts and pressures that you would come to inherit as you grew. But I knew I could count on Azaka and Kamidake to be there to guide you, if you didn't have anyone else to whom you could turn. Azaka as a father...and Kamidake as a brother._"

Sasami's cheeks pinkened, and she shook her head.

"No, Tsunami. I'm not so young as that." She murmured. "Not as a brother."

Tsunami smiled.

"_Then you need no explanation from me_." She said lightly. "_Either way, Kagato's usurpation and Tenchi's arrival on Jurai meant that their first loyalty was to him. But I always knew Ten-sama was not destined to rule Jurai. I would never give an Emperor the power of the Light Hawk Wings, knowing how easily too much power corrupts. And when he had gone...I knew it would be to you that they would go_."

She hesitated for a while, then,

"_Did I choose wisely, Sasami-chan_?"

"You know that you did." Sasami looked pensive. "And it's good to know that they at least understand."

"_If you were to call them to arms in my name, they would obey you over all others - even over the Emperor himself_." Tsunami whispered. "_Their loyalty is to Tsunami before any Jurai-born prince._"

"I'd rather not do that." Sasami said apprehensively. "Overthrow my Uncle's orders? I don't want to cause any trouble."

"_Nor do I want you to_." Tsunami shook her head. "_But if you do not manage to change his mind, Sasami-chan, you will have to disobey him. I hope you will at least sway Ayeka - but I can only speak directly to you. I rely on you to do all my other communicating for me...and have to hope that they listen._"

"I'll do my best to keep working on them. All of them." Sasami promised. "And I'll talk to Azaka and Kamidake as well, Tsunami-onechan. I'll try my best - maybe if they're also on my side, Uncle Azusa will realise that something has to be done. After all, if Tokimi really seeks Tsunami, sooner or later she'll realise she's made a mistake. And when she does..."

"_When she does, Jurai will have to be ready for her_." Tsunami nodded her head. "_I have faith in you, my little sister. Take my words once more to your Emperor...for Jurai's sake, I pray this time he heeds them well_."

---------

"What do you mean, you've lost contact with her?"

Tokimi's eyes flared with a strange, angry fire as she glared down at her hapless servant, energy glowing from her fingers as she surveyed him. Clay took a nervous step backwards, biting down on his lip as he registered his mistress's rage.

"I...I just can't get a signal, Tokimi-sama." He babbled. "The last contact I had with her, she told me she was going to break into Washu's laboratory and steal genetic material from there - material taken from that boy - the one who you so desperately seek. Since then I have been unable to reach her - no matter how hard I try."

"Washu." Tokimi's eyes narrowed until they were little more than slits. "I should have known. Wherever she is, there's always complication in my path!"

"Perhaps you should eliminate her, Tokimi-sama - once and for all." Clay suggested. "If she's such a hindrance to your plans. Washu is an old scientist now - half mad and careless in her work. And she's no match for your ladyship's power or influence. Why not snuff her out of existance completely?"

"No...no." Tokimi frowned. "I can't kill Washu, any more than she can kill me. You are a fool, Clay - putting your faith so much in science. Washu and I both operate and exist beyond your perameters - don't you realise that?"

As he stared at her blankly, she let out a humourless laugh that chilled him right to the bone.

"All those years working in her shadow, and you never sensed it?" She asked softly. "Washu is more than you'll ever fully comprehend. True, her power is less than my own. But to destroy her..."

"Your ladyship is capable of subjugating anyone she chooses." Clay looked confused. "Why not Washu?"

"Silence, you idiot." Tokimi raised her hand, and Clay fell backwards as if slapped by an invisible force. "I need to think. Washu is not your average mad scientist - she's not like you. Did you never bother to know your enemy when at the Academy, Dr Clay?"

"I hated her. I didn't waste time knowing her. She was always trying to be better than me and claiming I was stealing her work when she couldn't find the right way to work things out." Clay's lip curled in distaste. "She was primitive and raw when I first met her, and not much has changed in all the time we worked together. No, Tokimi-sama. I didn't care to know her better. She was there - that was enough of a motive for me to hate her. And when they sent her away, I thought that at last I would get to work out of her shadow. At last she was no longer there to bother me!"

"But she's still out there, just like your pathetic droid." Tokimi said, her tone dangerously low. "I should have known better than to put my faith in technology and scientists. Even the most basic of tasks fall apart when left in your hands, Clay. All I asked you to do was infiltrate Masaki's life and obtain genetic samples, so I could find Tsunami's weakness before moving in for the kill. First your droid delivers inadequate material, and now you've lost her altogether! I know Washu is involved in this - I can sense it."

She fell silent for a moment, contemplating. Then she raised her head, glancing at him thoughtfully.

"You will go to the Earth and rectify this before it spirals out of control." She said softly. "I have put my faith too long in your creations and I won't do it any more. Go to the Earth and destroy the soulless one before she can reveal anything of our plan to Washu. She is a nusiance and I won't have her trying to get in my way."

"To the Earth?" Clay stared. "To destroy Zero?"

"That is what I said."

"But..."

"But nothing." Tokimi shook her head. "Your droid has become a liability to me and I will not tolerate failure. I have toyed with you too long - played along with your games and hoped that eventually they would pay off. Well, my patience has run out. Her time is over. Destroy her, and return here to me."

Her eyes narrowed again.

"Do not fail me, Clay." She added softly. "Or it will be you who is next."

Clay gulped, swallowing hard at the implication of her words. He nodded.

"Yes, Lady Tokimi. I understand." He said hurriedly. "I'll go to the Earth and I'll terminate Zero, just as you require."

"Good." Tokimi flexed her fingers. "And be careful about it, Clay. Washu is a dangerous enemy for you, even if she can't harm me so easily. It would be a nusiance indeed if she was to catch you in her territory."

"Tokimi-sama, why can't you kill Professor Washu?" Clay asked earnestly. "If she's in your way - what's to stop you?"

"That lies in a world that died before you were even born." Tokimi said darkly. "Washu's life force and mine...they stem from the same root. What powers her heart and speeds my magic is the same element, Clay. The Heart of Kihaku - the world which gave me life, and whose death I will avenge when I finally get my hands on Tsunami. To face Washu would be a complication that I do not need. She is one of them now - a traitor to her people, like so many others. But she is still tied to the world which gives me my strength. To destroy her, I would have to turn on my world. And I will never do that, Clay. Kihaku deserves vengeance. Not further destruction at the hands of it's most loyal guardian."

Clay stared.

"Washu...is from Kihaku too?" He whispered. "But how? Kihaku died centuries ago...milennia!"

A slow smile touched Tokimi's lips.

"There are many things your experiments won't tell you, scientist." She said frankly. "You would do better not wasting your time puzzling over them. Just know that I will have my revenge on her - traitor that she is - but it will have to wait. Right now...Tenchi Masaki is my priority. Enough timewasting. Kihaku demands blood...and Tsunami's blood _will_ be spilt!"

She drew her hands together, and the shimmering screen materialised on the furthest wall of the complex, bringing Seiryo into sharp focus.

"Agent Tennan, heed me well." She said softly, as Seiryo stopped in what he was doing, a startled look in his teal eyes. "The time has come. I have had enough of waiting. Amass your forces and prepare for my final word. It's time to take Tenchi Masaki into my custody."


End file.
